You're No Mr Smith
by sentbyfools
Summary: COMPLETE. AU. Buffy and Angelus are the best assassins in the business. When Angelus steals one of Buffy's jobs from right under her nose, she goes to him for revenge. Things don't always work out as planned. Sequel to ch. 14 of "This is Not A Fairytale"
1. July 16: George Reynolds

**Title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**Chapter Title: **July 16: George Reynolds

**Author: **sentbyfools

**Pairing: **Buffy/Angelus

**Summary: **AU. Buffy and Angelus are the most skilled assassins in the business. When Angelus steals one of Buffy's job from right under her nose, she goes to him for revenge. Things don't always work out as planned. This is the sequel to Chapter 14 of This is not a Fairytale entitled _she loved the job_. That story's basically just an introduction to Buffy's job and kind of sheds some light on the way some events turn out the way they do in this fic.

**Author's Note: **Edited 1/27/2012. Still for Angel's blue eyed girl who was the inspiration for this fic.

* * *

**July 16**

Buffy slowly lowered herself out of the vent. She resisted the urge to crack her neck. The space had been tight, but she didn't want to risk announcing her presence for a few moments of comfort. She'd just have to wait until she got back home and could schedule an appointment with her masseuse.

She pulled away from her thoughts to focus on her job. Pausing, Buffy listened. The snores in the bedroom were as steady as before. _Typical of a man_, she thought wryly. _They can sleep through anything._

_Even their own death._

She took another step forward, but stopped when the man's snores choked off. She wasted no time sliding open the closet door and entering the bedroom.

Her eyes immediately went to the bed where George Reynolds lay sprawled out on his back across the sheets. He could almost pass for asleep, but Buffy knew a dead body when she saw one. Plus, the cross scratched into his cheek was a dead giveaway.

"Dammit," she hissed, kicking the closet door hard enough to remove it from its hinges. "Fuck. Fuck. _Fuck."_

She crossed the room and sat on the bed. She needed to make a call and it wasn't like George would mind.

"Wills, I need you to get me a location," Buffy said when the phone was picked up.

"_Who?"_

"Angelus."

* * *

**July 29**

Angelus was petting the girl's cheek when _she_ walked in. He slid his hands away from the girl slowly, his eyes following _her_ as she stabbed one of his guards in the neck and cracked open another's skull with her foot.

It didn't take long before _she_ was standing right in front of him, and he leaned his head into his hand, staring up at her.

"You took my job. _No one_ takes my jobs," she said icily. She took another step forward, standing in between his legs. Normally he would consider using the position to trip her up and pin her to the floor, but he knew that wouldn't work on someone as skilled as her. He'd heard of the Slayer. Everyone had heard of the Slayer, and Angelus knew that behind every rumor was a grain of truth. And from the rumors he'd heard, well….Angelus knew better than to underestimate her.

"Well, it wasn't actually _your_ job. The contract was first come, first served. You just happened to be a little too slow," he replied. She leaned over him in anger and he took that moment to look down her shirt. Damn, she had nice breasts.

"I'd been waiting there all day. Waiting for the perfect moment and you …_you –"_

He chuckled, watching her try to find the words. She was so _angry._ It was beautiful. He'd watched women break down at the thought of killing another human, seen women shudder and vomit as they watched someone die before them. Having a woman actually angered by the opposite was…refreshing.

"Cat got your tongue?" he asked when it was clear no more words were forthcoming.

"I'd like to cut out yours," she retorted, smiling at him and reaching behind her back to reveal a small dagger.

"I'd like to see you try," he replied calmly. She smiled at him again, and he poised himself for the attack.

She dove at him, dagger pointed towards his heart, but he slid under her outstretched hand and tackled her towards the ground. The dagger slipped out of her hand and skidded across the room, and Angelus used his weight to pin her beneath him. Buffy slid her hand underneath him and pulled his arm down so that he lost his balance and fell on top of her. She used his momentary confusion to push herself on top of him and she pinned his legs with her knees, sliding another dagger out of her shirt. He stopped fighting when he saw it and smirked up at her.

"You gonna kill me now?" he asked, watching her with slitted eyes. He was _really_ enjoying this. The Slayer was one hot piece of homicidal ass.

"Who said I was going to kill you to begin with?" she asked, a smile forming on her lips. He raised an eyebrow at her and smirked wider.

Slowly and keeping eye contact with her, Angelus raised his hands to her waist. When his hands finally encircled her, she flinched but moved closer to his touch. His hands slid underneath her shirt and he brushed another knife. He felt her poised to move again and he quickly pulled out the knife and threw it across the room. Buffy nearly jumped up but he held her still with his hands.

"Watch it," she said with annoyance and he laughed beneath her. He slid his hands further up her shirt, laughing again as he felt yet another knife nestled right beneath her bra. The pocket knife was folded shut, and Angelus removed it, throwing it towards the other discarded knife.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked, looking down at him. He noticed the knife was slack in her hand and her eyes were half-closed.

"I'm getting ready to fuck you," he replied, lifting up her bra to cup her breasts with his hands. He'd been right; she _did _have nice breasts. Nice, soft, and round breasts.

She moaned and pressed a hand against his chest. "Um, right. Like I'd let you?"

He chuckled again. "You're already letting me, Slayer. I'm just a second away from sticking my hand in your panties."

She nodded. "Right."

He wasn't expecting the blow to his chest, so when it came he fell backward causing his head to hit the ground hard. Angelus saw stars, and before he could react, the Slayer pinned his arms down with one hand, using the other to press the knife to his throat.

"Just because I didn't come here to kill you, doesn't mean I came here to fuck you. There are so many other things I could do to you that don't involve me taking my clothes off," she said slowly, her breathing harsh. "…or me getting you off," she added as an afterthought.

He'd been laughing a lot tonight, he realized as he let out another chuckle. He hadn't had this much fun in a while.

"Now, that's unfair. What did I ever do to you?"

Her eyes travelled across his face as she put her knife in her mouth and slipped a length of rope from under her shirt. He tilted his head to the side in questions. _How had he missed that?_ Damn, the Slayer was good.

With one hand still holding his hands, she wrapped the nylon rope around his wrists and knotted it tight. He sighed and resisted the urge to tear at his wrists. He hated being restrained, though he did restraining others, especially when it involved silk and leather. Buffy turned over to tie up his feet and he took the opportunity to stare at her ass. It was a nice ass, and her tight jeans did nothing but illuminate that.

"You know, lover, everything about you is simply perfect," he complimented as she turned back around to face him. His legs weren't bonded as tightly as his hands and he knew if he tried, he could probably get out of them easily. Noticing the small smile on her face, he realized she was probably expecting that.

"You put my feet in a strangler's wrap?" Angelus asked in surprise, staring at her. Her smile widened and he laughed heartily.

"You called me lover?" she said, sliding her hand in her hair.

"Well, since it was a choice between that and Slayer, I thought you might like that better," he replied cheerily.

Buffy leaned down so that her face was mere inches away from Angelus'. She leaned even closer, and Angelus was sure she was going to kiss him. "What makes you think I'd like that better?"

She lowered her head towards his chest as she began to cut away his shirt.

"You owe me $326 for the shirt," Angelus said, when she reached the end. Buffy pulled the shreds of the shirt off, cutting away at the armpit so that it fell away easily.

She glared up at him. Angelus stared down, liking the sight. "You owe me a job. But since you can't give me that…" Buffy trailed off and sat up in his lap.

"You have a tattoo," she stated.

"And you know this because…? Lover, have you been stalking me?"

She rolled her eyes. "Under your armpit. I can see the ink."

He nodded, liking his explanation better. He would not have minded being stalked by her.

"You've got good eyes, babe," he said, whistling. Again, he was not expecting her to attack, so when her hands wrapped around his throat, he actually choked.

"Okay, lover I can deal with and Slayer is okay, but do _not _call me babe. Got that?" she snapped in his face, tightening her hold on his throat.

He nodded and breathed deeply when she released him. Angelus knew he was going to have a bruise tomorrow. The Slayer was one crazy bitch. He would be lying if he said he didn't like that.

"So, lover, why are you undressing me?" he asked curiously.

"Maybe I'm just trying to get you naked," she said cheekily. She smirked at him, and closed her eyes, scratching the back of her neck. He watched sweat slide from her neck down between her breasts, and he licked his lips.

"I sincerely doubt that, though, if that is the reason, you don't have to tie me up for that."

She laughed and slid the knife across his chest. "Maybe I like you tied up."

He gave her a lopsided smile. Buffy leaned down and pressed her hand to his cheek. "Now, where do you want it?"

"Where do I want what, lover?" Angelus asked, pressing into her hand. It was really warm.

"The cross," she replied brightly, removing her hand. "I'm going to carve it into you, just like you did to poor Mr. – Mr.…well, I can't remember his name. Oh well."

"You're not carving it into me," he said calmly.

"Really?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "And why not?"

"Because, lover, I won't let you," he said matter-of-factly.

She giggled. "And you're going to stop me. You're seriously underestimating my ability to restrain you."

"And you're seriously underestimating my ability to break free."

He wiggled his untied hands in front of her. Her eyes widened and he used her surprise to knock the knife out of her hands and propel her across the room. She landed hard against the couch and he slid across the floor, grabbed her fallen knife, and cut free his feet.

She'd fallen hard, but was up by the time he got to her. She slammed her knee into his thigh and tried to punch him in the face but he was faster, catching her flying arm and pulling it behind her back. She cried out in pain and he slammed her against the couch, causing her to fall back into it.

He leaned over her and pressed the knife under her chin. She looked up at him with angry eyes.

"Now, why can't we just be friends?"

Buffy bared her teeth at him, letting out a small growl. "I'd rather die."

Angelus lifted Buffy with one arm, keeping the knife beneath her chin and turned her so he could sit down in the chair with her in his lap. Buffy wrapped her legs around his waist, trying to kick backwards, but only pushing her body closer to his in the process.

"That can be arranged," he said darkly, before smiling at her, "But see I don't think you would rather be dead because, well, you hesitated."

Buffy flinched, looking away and Angelus knew he had her. One of the first things he learned was not to hesitate and when Buffy had originally had him beneath her, she'd hesitated to attack him. She'd let him feel her up.

"See, lover, you're hesitating again. But see, that's okay. I like it," he said slowly, watching her face as his hand slid down her waist. He slid the hand back up and under her shirt, stroking the soft skin of her lower back.

"Mmm, if we're going to do this, you can at least remove the knife," she said sweetly, her eyes twinkling.

"I don't trust you," he replied, moving his hand up to unclasp her bra. He heard her sharp intake of breath as her breasts were freed and he smiled into her glaring face. "And besides, this is more fun."

"You're sick, but smart," she said, pressing her hands against his bare chest.

"You love it," he replied, turning his attention back to her breasts. He cupped them in his hands, caressing the soft flesh, before he released them listening to the almost inaudible slap of her breasts against her chest.

She moaned, digging her nails into his stomach. He hissed as she scraped them across his skin, drawing blood. Pulling her hands away from him, he lifted them above her head so he could remove her shirt. He ran his hands over her breasts, before pulling her closer to him. Kissing her softly, he began to remove her pants. They were as tight as he'd originally thought and by the time he'd pulled them fully off her hips he'd lost most of his already tentative patience.

Angelus pulled his lips away from Buffy's and they both struggled to catch their breath. He stared into her bright, green eyes, realizing that he'd drop the knife long minutes ago and she hadn't tried to kill him yet. He smiled at her and she smiled at him in turn. His eyes travelled down her body, lingering on her breasts before turning their gaze further down.

"I like your panties," he said, staring at her bright neon pink and green boy shorts. He ran his hand along the waist, pulling it back and smacking it against her skin.

"Take them off," she ordered, and Angelus looked back up at her to see Buffy had closed her eyes, biting her lip hard as she rocked against him.

"Someone's horny," he stated, and when she rocked against him again, grinding into his hard-on, he bit his own lip, unsure of whether his comment was for Buffy or himself.

Buffy grabbed his head in his hands and tugged him close so she could kiss him. Angelus let her lead him in the kiss until his need for dominance took over and he moved her hands, holding them against his hips.

"You gotta get up a minute, lover," he murmured against her lips minutes later. She groaned, but allowed him to lift her and he jerked his pants down his hips, ignoring the burn of the leather chafing against his bare skin. This was not a day to not wear boxers.

He amended that thought quickly when Buffy's hand encircled his cock, stroking it up and down. Angelus groaned, kicking his pants the rest of the way off.

"What ─"he began when Buffy started to crawl out of his lap but when she positioned herself between his legs, he stopped his protests and watched her with hooded eyes.

She smiled up at him, before focusing her attention between his legs. Buffy rubbed her hand up and down his cock, and then moved her hand back to the tip, squeezing the head of his cock with her fingers. He moaned and she smiled wider. She leaned in farther, licking the droplets of precum off the head. After a few moments, she stopped her motions and opening her mouth, she slid his cock inside. She sucked on the tip, wrapping her hand around the shaft for better balance. Buffy stroked her hand up and down his shaft as she moved her head up and down the tip, every thrust going farther and farther into her mouth until she was hitting the back of her throat with his cock.

Angelus watched her head move up and down his cock and felt himself grow impossibly harder at the sight. Damn, she was good. He hadn't a blowjob like this since Darla had left him and even Darla's mouth didn't compare to the soft, warm heat of Buffy's. After fighting with himself for few good minutes, he began to thrust down her throat. Buffy was startled at first, but she took it in stride, moving her head to meet his thrusts.

_This is amazing,_ Angelus thought, but he knew he needed to stop this. Though the prospect of coming down Buffy's throat appealed to him, fucking her appealed even more.

"Stop, baby," he gritted out and Buffy stopped sucking and pulled herself off of him with a wet popping noise.

"God, you're so hot," he murmured as she crawled back into his lap. Angelus pulled her in to him, kissing her hard. When his hands moved into her panties, she moaned his name and pressed against him.

"Fuck, lover, you are _so _wet," he said, rubbing his fingers hard against her clit. Her panties were soaked with her juices and Angelus _loved _it. He'd barely touched her, so that meant she was either very sensitive or she had gotten turned on by sucking his cock. Angelus was betting it was both.

He lifted her up again and tugged her panties down and off her hips. He threw them across the room with the rest of their discarded clothing and then focused his attention back on her mound. He ran his fingers through the light patch of blonde hair. When his fingers reached her clit again, he brushed it lightly, feeling her shudder in his lap. She wrapped her arms around his chest and began to dig her nails in his back and her teeth into his shoulder. He slipped one finger, and then another, inside of her, thrusting them in and out. Her wetness made it easy for him to slip another finger inside and he knew it wouldn't be long before he'd be sliding his cock into her. Just the thought of that made him harder and gritted to his teeth, trying to turn his focus away from his raging cock and back to her. She made an unintelligible noise against his shoulder and it was only when he listened harder that he realized she was chanting his name.

"Angelus, Angelus, Angelus," she whispered harshly against his shoulder and he thrust his fingers into her harder and faster. She bit his shoulder again and he felt her tighten around his fingers.

"Mmm, Angelus!" she yelled as she came and he lifted her hips, positioning his cock against her opening. When he slid inside her, they moaned in unison. Her pussy was so hot and tight, god, she practically burned him.

"Fuck," he groaned, thrusting harder inside her. At this rate, he wouldn't last long, and from the noises Buffy was making, he knew she wouldn't either. Already, he could feel the tremors of her orgasm pulsing around his cock. Angelus tried to hold off his orgasm but when Buffy came, he came as well, spilling his seed deep inside her.

He panted into her hair, the noise bouncing off the walls of the empty room. Pulling her off his chest, he pressed his lips to hers. He kissed her deeply and she deepened it, opening her mouth to let his tongue in. A moment later, she pulled away, climbing out of his lap and walking towards her clothes.

Angelus watched Buffy slip on her panties and fasten her bra before he followed her, getting out of his seat and walking over to her.

"So, I never got your name, lover, and though calling you that is pretty fun, I'd much rather have something else to call you when I'm fucking you," he stated, standing in front of her.

Buffy looked up from where she was tugging on her pants and stared at him. "Who says that this is going to be a more than a onetime thing? And who said that I'd been planning to tell you my name anyways?"

He smirked at her, stroking a few stray hairs out of her face with his hand. "I think the fact that I'm still alive kind of speaks for itself, lover."

She laughed, "This is never happening again. Next time you fuck with one of my jobs, I _will_ kill you."

"_Right_," he said with sarcasm. He watched her slip her pants the rest of the way on.

"And if you want to know anything about me, you'll have to find it out on your own. I'm not that easy," she continued, sliding into her shirt.

Angelus watched her walk out the door before he moved to put his own clothes on. He had some work to do. David Nabitt had put out another free-license hit and with that kind of money involved, Angelus knew Buffy would definitely go for it and if he wanted to be there when she was, he needed to do some research.

Besides, he'd like to know her name. Slayer just didn't sound right in the heat of sex.


	2. September 9: Maggie Walsh

**Title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**Chapter Title: **September 9: Maggie Walsh

**Chapter Summary: **All of Buffy's friends agree, she needs to get laid. Angelus is happy to oblige.

**Author's Notes: **Okay, so this chapter was written for Jen who asked oh so nicely for it. I'm really enjoying writing this fic. Crazy, murderous Buffy is kind of awesome to write and Angelus is well...Angelus. Yum. Anyways, what else is there to say?I'll tell you when I think of it.

**Thanks to: of course Angel's blue eyed girl, raginspuffyh8ter**, **xan-merrick, riencrz**, **kitottekat, ba2006, and princesakarlita411 for reviewing. You guys seriously make my day.**

* * *

**August 17**

Buffy walked back and forth. She knew that her constant fidgeting was wearing a hole in the carpet, but she really couldn't find it in herself to care. Willow was taking too damn long.

"What is the fucking holdup, Will? It's never taken you this long to make me papers," she snapped, stopping her restless motions and walking back towards Willow.

Willow turned in her chair and stared at Buffy. "This _is_ the normal amount of time it takes to make convincing papers and if you weren't being such a bitch, you'd notice that. You've been such a Mrs. Cranky-Pants ever since that failed job in Detroit, and I think Faith was right about you needing a good lay to help release all that pent up energy," she retorted, before turning back to her computer.

Buffy's scowl deepened. She did not need a "good lay". She'd already had one of those…and she was _so_ not going there. Not at all. No, that wasn't the problem. The problem was everyone, Willow, Faith, and Xander…everyone was slacking off. And she was really getting sick of it.

She began to prowl around the office again. Ten minutes later, the sound of the printer starting up announced the completion of Willow's job, and it was good thing too; Buffy had just about reached the end of her rope and she was only a few seconds away from picking up the glass vase on the windowsill and throwing it across the room.

Buffy grabbed the papers out of printer, holding them carefully to avoid any smudging. She reached down to the bottom of the printer, picking up the ID, driver's license, and two credit cards engraved with the name Helen Pruitt.

She looked them over, taking longer with the driver's license and ID. She photographed well. Smiling, she patted Willow on the head affectionately.

"Good job," she said absently, her focus now on the detailed information about her newest identity.

"I'm not a dog, Buffy," Willow said, scowling. She pulled away from Buffy's hand and stood up from the computer. "The details about your life from the age of three onwards are all there, plus pertinent medical information, and what not. I hacked into their system and replaced you with the original applicant for the job, so they should be getting back to you within the next day or so."

Buffy glanced up from her reading. She'd have to dye her hair brown for this. She wrinkled her nose at the thought. Brown dye was so hard to wash out. "So, I'm all set?"

"Yeah. Xander said he'll have the car set up with all of your equipment by this evening, and all of Faith's information is in the file I gave you earlier."

Buffy nodded and walked over to the couch to get her coat. She would need to sharpen her secretarial skills before Walsh called her in, and she also wanted to clean up her house before she left. The last time Buffy had left on a job without cleaning, she'd ended up sleeping with the man who had taken that job away from her.

Not that she thought the house had anything to do with that, but still, it never hurt to be sure.

Buffy was halfway to the door when she stopped and turned back. Willow looked up from the computer to give her a questioning stare.

"Hey, can you find out what Angelus is up to?" Buffy asked.

Willow raised an eyebrow as she began to type. "Yeah, but why? I thought you warned him off taking your jobs."

Buffy ignored the question. It was true; she had already told Angelus to back off her jobs, but she just wanted to make sure.

It never hurt to be sure.

* * *

**September 9**

"It was good of you to come in on such short notice, Ms. Pruitt. I just need these forms notarized and sent in, and then you can go back to enjoying your weekend."

Buffy followed behind Maggie Walsh, smiling despite the condescending tone in her voice. Women like Maggie were what made Buffy's job fun. They were just like the cheerleaders in high school who thought they ruled the world just because they happened to have some power. Buffy had very much enjoyed taking those girls down, the looks on their faces as they burned alive forever captured in her mind, and she knew that killing Walsh would be just as, if not more, enjoyable.

Walsh entered her office and after a moment, Buffy followed. She really hated this room. It was too sterile, too much like a hospital or a lab for Buffy's liking. The clean cut walls of Plexiglas and sterling silver and the matching sterling silver chairs and glass desk made Buffy twitch and she was once again thankful for Maggie Walsh's pride.

Buffy was fairly certain that the only reason Walsh had called her in, alone, on a Saturday had been to warn her off Riley. From Faith's information, Buffy knew that Walsh and Riley had a fling a while back, but it was only through Buffy's own careful observance that she realized that Walsh still considered Riley hers.

That's why Buffy had asked him out. She was actually supposed to be on a date with him right now, but Maggie had other plans.

And in fact, so did Buffy.

She had never planned to go on that date anyways. If Walsh hadn't fallen for the bait, she would've just gone to Walsh's house and killed her there. She was tired of this job, tired of pretending to be a good little secretary, and especially tired of being a brunette.

Buffy watched Walsh dig through her desk from a chair in front of the desk. She slid the penknife out of her pocket and fingered it.

"Helen, I know this is personal and your own business, but where do you see your relationship with Mr. Finn going?"Walsh asked sweetly, an almost matronly smile on her face

Buffy plastered a confused look on her face. "What do you mean, Ms. Walsh?"

"What I mean_, girl_, is that you and Riley will never last. You're just a fling to him. In the end, he'll only leave you with a broken heart, so you might as well stop before you even start," Walsh stated, her voice losing its sweet tone and her mouth forming into a hard line.

Buffy smiled at her and watched as Walsh's face lost its confidence. She stood up then, and began to walk towards Walsh, who took a small step back before raising her hackles and glaring Buffy down.

"Ms. Pruitt, what _are_ you doing?"

Buffy ignored the question and removed the cap of the penknife. "Maggie, you talk too much."

Seeing the knife, Walsh backed up quickly and before Buffy could finish her off, a hard fist connected with her head sending her spinning.

Walsh began to scream, but Buffy stood up quickly and slammed her head against the wall. As Walsh slid to the floor in a crumpled heap, Buffy faced her attacker.

Somehow she wasn't surprised to find herself parrying Angelus' next attack.

"You know, I clearly remember telling you that I'd kill you the next time you tried to take one of my jobs," she gritted out, feeling anger and heat rise within her. Angelus looked really good in a pair of tight black leather pants and a red silk shirt. She couldn't help the lust and memories that assaulted her at the sight, and angry at herself, she focused all her energies into taking him down.

"See, lover, I can't just let you corner the market on all the good kills. That would go against everything I stand for," he quipped back, smirking at her as he dodged a kick to the face.

"Oh, _you_ stand for something?" Buffy snapped, slamming into his chest with her shoulder. He hit the wall and glass shattered against the floor as Walsh's certificates fell from their hooks.

"Of course, lover. Death and destruction for high profit is my motto," he answered cheerily, ducking Buffy's next blow and causing her to slam her fist into the wall. She growled in anger and reached down in her belt to pull out a black-handled trench knife. With expert precision, she cut her skirt along the slit all the way up to her waist, making it easier for her to kick out at Angelus.

This time, her foot connected with his face and he hit the desk, toppling over it. She took his moment of disorientation to run over to Maggie Walsh who was crawling along the floor, towards the panic button under her desk. Walsh hadn't wanted to seem weak by putting security cameras in her office, so the only way her guards could be alerted was through that button. Once again, Buffy was thankful for Walsh's pride. With Angelus here, dispatching any guards that came running while trying to prevent Angelus from killing Walsh would've proved difficult.

Bending down, she pulled Walsh's head back and moved the knife to her throat. Buffy stared into Walsh's scared, pleading eyes before dragging the knife across her trachea. Blood splattered across the floor and Walsh grabbed at her throat, choking for air.

Without warning, Buffy was pulled away from Walsh and slammed against the wall. She dropped the knife as Angelus pinned her with his body.

He stared at the dying Walsh with almost detached amusement. "That's a thing of beauty, lover. Truly artful."

She snorted. "Well, yeah I try."

As Walsh's struggles slowly stopped, Angelus turned back to Buffy and smirked. "Now, what to do with you… what do you prefer Buff? Do you like being on your knees or on your back? Hmm?"

She glared at him. "You know my name."

He chuckled and brushed his hand through her hair, "You're not the only one who can do a bit of research, Buff."

"Yeah, but see I'm better at using it, considering the fact that I was the one who finished the job," she retorted, trying to force him off her.

He twirled her hair in his hand, before releasing it. He tilted her head up and she glared into his eyes. "That may be true, but I didn't have to spend weeks pretending to be an employee to get in here. See, Buff, research isn't the only thing that makes a good assassin. It also takes skill…which you seem to be lacking."

"Let me go, and I'll show you just how much I'm lacking in skill," she said sweetly, causing him to laugh heartily.

"You know, Buff, I'd almost forgotten just how hilarious you are."

Angelus released her chin, and slid his hand away from her mouth before she could bite him. He gave her a smile for her effort, and she smirked back at him, her eyes daring him to bring his fingers close again.

"Did you miss me, Buffy?" he asked, grinding himself against her. He'd been horny all day, the excitement at the prospect of meeting his hot little Slayer making his cock hard enough to hurt. She was just as fuckable as he remembered, though the newly dyed hair brought a frown to his face. He'd much preferred his Buff with long golden tresses. They suited her better.

"Maybe," she said, squirming beneath him. If she could just get her hand to her shirt she could get her other knife.

Angelus rolled his eyes, watching her movements. His little slayer was so silly. Like he wouldn't notice her trying to get at her weapons? And he knew she had more than one; his little Slayer had more knives on her than a door-to-door knives salesman.

"Only maybe? Buff, I'm disappointed. I thought I made a better impression on you than that," he said with mock sadness. He slid one hand between their bodies and grabbed her questing hand, guiding it away from her goal and towards his erection.

"Well, at least I know _this_ made a good impression," he said lewdly, rubbing her hand against his leather clad cock.

"You really think so? I'm sorry to inform you, but I'm really good at faking it. Don't feel bad, you're not the first guy I've fooled," she replied airily. She tried to close her fingers around his erection, but his hand prevented her from closing her fingers. He was so warm against her palm and she could feel her body warming to match him.

He leaned over her even more, his hand crushing into her shoulder. She winced in pain. "There's no way you could've faked those orgasms, Buff. You and I both know that."

He fought the urge to slam her harder into the wall. The thought of Buffy having other lovers angered him, and he wanted to hit something. Too bad Walsh was dead. She would've made a great punching bag.

Buffy breathed deeply, the pain in her shoulder making it hard for her to focus. She was glad when Angelus released her, but realized quickly that it wasn't necessarily a good thing. She watched him pull out a length of nylon rope from his pocket and she fought him hard as he wrapped her wrists together. He was really good at it, and Buffy found herself growing wet at the thought. She wasn't really into bondage, but Angelus made everything seem attractive.

"You like this don't you, lover?" he asked, laughing at the righteous anger on her face. He couldn't resist any longer and leaned down to kiss her. He pulled back quickly, licking blood from his lip.

Angelus smirked. "I didn't know you were in to the kinky stuff, Buff. If only you had told me, I would've brought more toys."

She hissed at him and closed her eyes. He bent down and kissed her again. This time, she didn't bite, instead allowing him better access. He cupped her face with one hand, leaning against the wall with the other as he kissed her. When she began to moan into his mouth, he nipped her lip with his teeth, drawing blood.

Her eyes shot open and he pulled back, smiling. "Well, now we match."

Buffy licked the blood from her lip slowly, and Angelus grew harder at the sight. Lifting her up, he carried her to the desk. He bent her over it and used the cut slit of her skirt to tear it the rest of the way off her.

"What the hell?" she yelled, trying to wriggle her hands out of their bonds. God, he was _good._ This would take her awhile to get out of.

_Probably planned it that way_, she thought sarcastically as his hands glided over her hips. She opened her mouth to criticize him, but all that came out was a pained moan as his hand slapped against her panty clad bottom.

Angelus smiled, staring at the red print his hand left on her ass. God, she was so hot. It was worth having to wait over a month to see her. It made the sex spicier.

"Mm, Buff, your ass looks so good with my handprint on it," he murmured into her ear as he bent over her, grinding his erection into her bottom.

"Fuck you," she spat, bucking her hips against him. The stinging in her butt had faded to a dull throbbing, but it still hurt. And she knew it would leave a mark. Her body was sensitive to things like that. Though she healed easily, she bruised just as easily.

"That's what I'm going for," he replied, lifting his body off her again. He walked to the side of the desk and reached around her, tugging up her shirt.

"Hmm, sorry, Buff, but you gotta lose the shirt." He picked up Buffy's fallen pen knife and sliced through her shirt. He pulled the tattered remains from her body and threw them to the floor.

"Gee thanks, Angelus. Now, how the fuck do you think I'm going to get out of here?" she asked snidely.

He bent down and kissed her cheek. "You'll think of something. You're a smart girl."

He chuckled at her hiss of anger and slid his hands beneath her, cupping her breasts. He pulled her bra down roughly and covered her breasts with his hands. He molded the soft mounds in his hands, before letting them go to smack roughly against the table. She moaned, and Angelus found it hard to discern whether it was a moan of pain or pleasure.

"Please…" she said softly and he smirked. Buffy liked it rough.

"You gotta tell me what you want, Buff, or else I won't know," he said, stroking the soft skin of her back.

She glared at him, the green of her eyes flashing in annoyance. After a moment, she closed her eyes and murmured something he couldn't hear.

"I didn't hear you, Buff. Repeat please."

She opened her eyes and gritted her teeth. "Fuck me already, dammit."

He smirked and patted her on the head. "Now, you're speaking my language, lover."

Buffy groaned. Why did he have to make her so hot? He'd barely touched her and yet here she was, begging him to fuck her. She guessed she could blame it on the heat of the kill, but she knew that it was all Angelus. She heard the unmistakable sound of pants dropping to the floor and she sighed happily when he pressed against her.

Angelus tugged Buffy's panties down to wrap around her boots and ran his fingers up and down her bottom. She had the perfect ass, all curvy and soft. He smacked her bottom again, and then ran his fingers down farther. She was wet and hot, and he told her so, murmuring it into her back while he pressed kisses to her skin and slid his fingers insider her.

"Please," she whimpered, thrusting her hips against his fingers. She was _so_ close but he was deliberately keeping her on the edge, pulling his fingers back each time she reached the brink. Buffy didn't know how long she could last like this, and she didn't want to know. She hissed as Angelus pressed her farther into the glass table. Glass tables were not conducive to fucking, and she only hoped that Maggie Walsh's pride had made her buy the best glass tables. She did not want this table breaking on her, especially in her state of undress. She was pulled from her thoughts when Angelus pulled away.

"But-" she started to say, but her words were cut off when she felt his tongue brush her clit.

"Oh god," she chanted as Angelus began to lick her thoroughly. He drove two fingers insider her as he tasted her, leaving no part of untouched. When her words turned into strangled whines, he thrust another finger into her as he sucked her clit into his mouth. Buffy came seconds later, and she stared at the wall with dazed eyes.

"You ready for me, baby?" Angelus asked, sliding himself against her entrance.

Buffy whined again in response and drove his cock inside her. He thrust against her hard, their hips slapping together loudly with each time he pulled out and slid back in. He was so hard and she was so tight, and he groaned her name as he tried to stave off his orgasm.

"Fuck, Buff, Fuck," he shouted, pounding her into the table. She answered with a whimper and pushed her hips back against him, begging him with her body as she was too dazed to do it with her mouth.

Angelus knew she was close, and he reached around her waist and slid his fingers against her clit. At the first brush of a finger, Buffy whimpered again, panting his name into the quiet of the room. When his fingers brushed her again, she cried out and came, sending him over the edge with her.

Angelus was the first to recover and pulled himself off of her. She made a glorious picture, lying nude across the table with her skin flushed from exertion. He committed the image to memory, planning to savor it later when he'd be able to put the image to paper.

He picked up the knife from the floor and slashed the ties that bonded her. Angelus then sat her up on the table and caressed her wrists, rubbing the blood back into them. It was a while before she opened her eyes, and when she did, he was staring up at her, a smirk on his face.

"You know, Buffy, I'm really enjoying these meetings. I think we should make it a regular thing."

She rolled her eyes at him and scoffed. "I'll cut your balls off before fucking you again."

He chuckled, patting her knee. "Buffy, sweetheart, you are such a kidder."

He leaned in, kissing her on the cheek before reaching down to pick up his fallen clothes. He sat on the table and put on his pants, but when he went to grab his shirt, Buffy had already taken it and put it on.

Angelus smirked. "I like you in my clothes."

"And I like you dead. We all like unhealthy things," she replied absently, slipping on her panties under his shirt. "It's a wonder the guards didn't come, with all the noise we were making."

"Oh, them? I killed them on the way in. I didn't want anyone walking in on us."

She raised an eyebrow and pressed her hands to her hips. "You were planning this?"

He wagged his finger at her and leaned in to kiss her again. "Now that would be telling."

She pulled away from him and jumped off the table, frowning. "Look at the mess you made. Our prints are probably all over this room."

"Don't worry, Buff, I already called the cleanup crew. They'll go in when we leave," he said, pulling on his shoes. Buffy walked and stood in front of him, a murderous look in her eye. "You were planning this."

Standing up, he pressed yet another kiss to her mouth before walking out the room, whistling a jaunty tune.

When he left, Buffy picked up the tattered remains of her skirt, before dropping them to the floor in disgust. She didn't know what it was, but she was feeling more relaxed than she had since he'd first entered her life. Maybe Faith and Willow were right. Maybe she had needed a good lay. And Angelus had been more than good ─ _god_, the pleasure was still coursing through her body.

She licked her lips, her tongue sliding over the bite he'd made in her bottom lip. It stung a little, but he hadn't bitten her that deeply.

Buffy thought about the fact that he had planned this all, and wondered if he had even planned to kill Walsh in the first place. She wouldn't put it past him to pretend to want to take her job just so he had the chance to screw her.

_Well,_ she thought, smiling to herself. _Two could play at that game. The next time they met, she would be ready._

She walked out the room, grinning, the sound of her own whistling echoed down the empty hall.


	3. October 24: Jason Reed

**Title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**Chapter Title: **October 24: Jason Reed

**Chapter Summary: **Consciences are for people too weak to take what they want.

**Thanks to angelsslayer69, vikinggoddss, wolfmoonxx02, tdevilgirl, angelspixee, xan-merrick, KimberKat**, **bangellover, witchywoman9491, jjagogo, tinkerbell1388, slave2angelus, hipntrendy, kitotterkat, and princesakarlita411 for the reviews and favs and alerts. You guys win at life. This chapter is for you!**

**And especial thanks to Angel's blue eyed girl of course. Jen, you are so awesome! :)**

* * *

**October 13**

Buffy's fax was beeping when she walked through the door. She sprinted over to it and pulled out the message:

_David Nabitt requests a meeting with Jason Henry Reed sometime before October 31. _

_Leave a message if you can set them up._

Buffy smiled happily. She'd been waiting for a fax from him. David always had someone he wanted dead, and it was his luck that he had enough money to make it happen.

He was lucky he had enough money to make her do it.

It was at moments like this that Buffy thought back to the first time she killed.

She was eight. Celia, her cousin and best friend, was dying from leukemia. Buffy hadn't understood the full impact of her decision at the time, but when Celia had looked at her, brown eyes large with pain and fear, and told Buffy she just wanted to die, Buffy had nodded in acquiescence and gave her what she wanted. Taking the pillow from behind Celia's head, Buffy had smothered her until Celia's slight movements had stopped. She hadn't even known Celia was dead until she was being pulled off her by a hospital orderly and taken away.

Her trial had been just as blurred.

One moment, she was in a cell with all the other juvenile criminals, the next, she was being sentenced to rehabilitation.

It was there that she had met Faith.

Buffy didn't really pay attention to the other children there, but Faith had stood out to her for some reason. That might have had something to do with the fact that the first time Buffy had seen her, Faith had been stealing a chocolate bar out of the resident nurse's pocket. Faith had looked up at her just as she'd slipped her hand out of the nurse's pocket, and Buffy had looked back at her, before turning away to finish her writing.

To her surprise, Faith had sat down beside her.

"Want it?" Faith asked, offering Buffy the Hershey's bar.

Buffy had looked at her in confusion, "Why would you want to give it to me?"

Faith rolled her eyes and laughed. "You didn't tell on me. So I guess I should share."

Buffy stared at her in confusion. "I didn't tell on you because if you were a good person, your conscience would've made you turn yourself in."

Faith laughed harder and poked Buffy in the side. "Consciences are for people to weak to take what they want. I am not weak."

Buffy bit her lip. "So, if I wanted to help someone, but I had to do something bad to do it, that means I don't have a conscience?"

Faith shrugged. "I don't know. It doesn't really matter to me, anyways."

"Want, Take, Have. That's the only thing you gotta remember," Faith continued, smiling up at her as she once again pressed the Hershey's into Buffy's hand.

Buffy had slowly smiled back and taken it, savoring each bite. _Want, Take, Have._

Buffy smirked to herself as she relived the memory. That was the best advice she had ever received. Faith was right. Who needed a conscience when you could live free?

Besides, the job paid well. And it was so hard to find a well paying job nowadays. Money trumped consciences any day.

She placed the fax on her counter and poured herself a glass of water. She would have to call Willow. She'd need some information before she wrote David back.

* * *

**October 24**

Angelus frowned as he quietly opened the terrace doors. He'd been expecting Buffy to be here, it was after all a Nabitt job, and it was a rare occasion that she passed one of those up.

He stepped into the room and took another step forward before he stopped, listening. The room was silent except for the buzz of the computer and the deep breathing of the man slumped over it. Angelus stood there for two long moments before continuing towards his target. The man didn't move as Angelus approached, save for a few minor twitches in his sleep.

Angelus pulled out his knife and moved ever closer to his victim. Angelus didn't like guns, finding them too noisy, too messy, and too lacking in finesse. Knives and other sharp implements were more of his style. You could do so much with a sharp blade and an exposed expanse of skin.

He smiled at the thought, before pushing it towards the back of his mind. He hadn't come prepared for that. It wasn't like he couldn't do an acceptable job with the tools he had on him, but he'd wanted to get this over with so he could spend more time with Buff.

Perhaps she was just late. His smile grew wider. He knew just the way to pass the time.

"Wakey, wakey," he said, slapping the sleeping man. Jason Reed woke with a jerk and when he saw Angelus, his eyes widened. Before he had a chance to scream, Angelus smacked a strip of masking tape over his mouth. Jason's muffled shouts filled the room, and he tried to push away from the desk but as soon as he saw Angelus' knife, he stopped his struggles, eyes widening in terror.

"There's a good lad," Angelus cooed, bringing his hand around the man's wrists and pulling them above his head forcefully. A loud crack spread across the room, and Angelus rolled his eyes as Jason's muffled screams began again, this time louder and more pained. It was just one broken bone. The man was lucky that Angelus already had plans, or else he'd have devoted more time to truly making the man scream.

"Don't cry, boy. You'll dead before it truly starts to hurt," Angelus said softly, doubting the man was even listening. He continued to cry and fed up, Angelus slapped him hard before grabbing him around the face.

"I said shut up. Or do you want me to scrape your eyes out with this knife?"

The man smartly quieted, though small moans did continue to escape him. Angelus stood up from his kneeled position by the man and listened intently. _Nothing._ He growled in anger before kneeling once again beside the man.

"See, boy, here's the dilemma. My Buffy is late and I'm bored, so what should I do to pass the time?" Angelus scraped the knife underneath Jason's chin, a trail of blood following the knife's path. "What do you think I should do?"

The man's eyes widened even more and his muffled pleas began once again. Angelus rolled his eyes. He began to press his knife further into the man's chin, digging it into the soft flesh, when a soft, barely audible noise in the next room stopped him. He smiled.

"Hey, it's your lucky day. Buff's here," he said, removing his knife from the man's jaw. The man visibly relaxed and Angelus continued to smile as pressed one hand to the top of the man's head and another underneath his chin. In one efficient twist of his hands, he snapped the man's neck. The man's head rolled back, and Angelus took his knife and carved a cross into the man's cheek.

Whistling jauntily, he stepped away from the body and walked towards the door. When he entered the next room, he spread his arms wide in greeting.

"Hey Buff! Did you miss me?"

Angelus was not expecting the blow when it came. He fell to the floor hard and Buffy stepped away from the wall, dropping the silver cane back in its stand.

"Yeah, I did," she replied to the quiet room. Lifting his bulk onto her shoulder with difficulty, she moved towards the door.

* * *

Angelus woke slowly. He kept his eyes closed and tried to remember the night's events. He'd arrived at the office, he'd killed the man, and Buffy had…

"Bitch!"

"You called?" Buffy replied and he opened his eyes to see her standing over him. He tried to reach over and grab her but was pulled back at by the chains around his wrist. He finally took in his surroundings. He was obviously in a hotel room, the mini-fridge and the large screen TV a dead giveaway. His hands were chained to the bed posts and when he tried to pull at them again, they wouldn't budge, serving only to chafe his wrists.

"You like 'em? I got them specially made out of platinum and steel. The guy said they were escape-proof. It seems like he was telling the truth. Too bad for him his product wasn't worth his life," Buffy continued, stroking the chain with her hand. She stood by the side of the bed, and if Angelus wasn't so pissed, he would've appreciated her tiny, revealing red tank top and short blue shorts more.

"Buff, not that I don't appreciate the thought, but I when I asked Santa for a little bit more bondage in my day, I wasn't asking for myself. Now let me go and then we can continue this in a much more, erm, enjoyable way," he gritted out, pulling at the chains again.

Buffy smile grew wider and she stroked his cheek with her hand, "Nah, I think I like you better like this. All tied up and waiting for me."

"_Buffy_, that wasn't a request. Let me out of these chains. _Now,_" he snapped, trying to reach out and grab her. The chains had some give, but not enough for him to reach her from his position on the bed.

Her smile slid from her face and was replaced with a hard smirk. "You're in no position to be giving me orders, _Angelus_, and I'll let you go when I'm done with you, so cool it."

She climbed onto the bed and slid one leg over his waist, straddling him. "Besides, if you're good, maybe I'll let you come too."

She rocked her hips against him and despite his anger, Angelus grew hard. There was no denying that Buffy looked sexy with her long, blonde hair thrown over her shoulder and her clothes tight and revealing. She rocked against him again and closed her eyes, sliding her hand down his bare chest. Angelus hadn't really noticed it before, but he was close to nude; he wore only his boxers.

He smirked and when she opened her eyes again, he stared at her grinning. "Did you plan this, Buff?"

She slid both hands up his chest and leaned over him, "Now that would be telling, wouldn't it, lover?" She leaned down further and captured his lips in her own, kissing him hard. He yearned to deepen the kiss but when his tongue dipped into her mouth, she pulled away.

She tsked at him, said, "You don't want to spoil yourself, do you?

She slid back down his body. Her hands disappeared under her shirt, and Angelus watched as she cupped her clothed breast and began to knead in her hand.

"Oh god, you are so hot. You make me so hot," she gasped out, rolling her hips against him again. She dug her nails into his thigh as she continued to fondle her breast.

"Mm, baby, if you let me out, I can make you even hotter," he said, pressing his hips up against hers. His cock throbbed and he could feel her warmth even through their layers of clothing. Buff wasn't lying, she _was _hot and Angelus ached to feel that heat wrapped around him. He'd forgive her for the chains if he could only fuck her right now.

She shushed him and ran her hand up and down his hip, before slipping it into his boxers. Her hand wrapped around his erection and she stroked him roughly.

"God, you're hard," Buffy murmured, sliding her fingers along the head of his cock. Angelus hissed and closed his eyes, savoring the touch. When she removed her hand, he groaned and opened his eyes to give her a heated stare. He smirked, watching her slide her shirt off.

"I like your bra, Buff. I think I've seen that pattern before. Is this the outfit I fucked you in before?" he asked, his eyes focused on her heaving breasts. She wore a neon green bra with bright neon pink polka dots that matched the panties he'd slid off her the first time he'd fucked her.

"Maybe," she replied, "It all depends on whether I was wearing the matching bra. Was I? I don't remember." Buffy threw her head back and lifted her breasts with both hands, moaning as she lifted them up and dropped them, making them bounce against her chest.

"I don't know either, lover. I wasn't really paying that much attention to your bra at the time. I was much more interested in those cute little breasts of yours."

Angelus watched her with hooded eyes and began to pull at his wrists again. There had to be a way out of these chains. He needed to touch Buffy, needed to feel her skin against his hands as he drove her into the mattress.

"Oh! Oh god, don't stop talking to me. Feels so good," she rambled. Buffy ground her hips into him before sliding her fingers under her waistband. She rubbed her hand along the top of her mound, pressing her fingers between her body and Angelus'.

Angelus chuckled, before acquiescing to her demand. "Damn, baby, you look amazing humping yourself against my cock. Take your bra off, Buff. I want to see your breasts."

Her breathing became heavier, and she panted hard as she reached behind her and unclasped her bra, releasing her breasts from their confines. They slapped against her chest and she threw her bra across the room before gathering them up in her hands.

"God, baby, I want to suck your tits. Wanna make you feel so good," Angelus said hotly, watching as Buffy tweaked her nipples with her fingers, squeezing her tits together. She moaned louder and began to thrust against her, recognizing the glazed look in her eyes.

"Yeah, you gonna come, Buff? Come for me, baby."

With a high keening cry, Buffy came against him. He smiled in satisfaction as she fell against his chest. After a few moments, she leaned up and stared at him.

"God, that was good," she said, smiling absently.

"God had nothing to do with it, Buff. You should give a man his due," Angelus replied, rocking against her for emphasis. Buffy's smile turned into a smirk and she sat up against him.

"Well, you have been good. I suppose I should thank-you," she said on a sigh. She reached down between her legs and slid his boxers off. The cool air across his cock was refreshing, but when her hand encircled him, he groaned. The cool air wasn't cool enough. Buffy was too hot, and her touch burned him. He was already on the edge and she hadn't even started.

"Fuck," Angelus bit out, wrapping his hands around their chains as he tried to hold back his orgasm. He didn't want to be jerked off like some horny school boy; he wanted to be buried deep inside her when he came.

"Babe," he started, before he realized his mistake. She removed her hand from his cock and scratched her nails across his chest, leaving three long bloody trails.

"What did I tell you, Angelus? Don't make me cut your balls off," she snapped, digging her nails into the bleeding wounds. She removed her hand and he watched as she licked the blood off her fingers.

"Kinky, Buffy. Very kinky," he commented, closing his eyes. He doubted Buffy knew just how hot that was and he catalogued that in the back of his mind of things to teach Buffy when he got his hands on her. He'd been so hoping for a chance to take out his other toys.

Buffy pressed her now wet hand against his cock and stroked him up and down in a rough, but steady rhythm. Her other hand slipped into her shorts and she stroked herself, moaning softly.

"Buffy, if you don't want me to come in your hand, you'd better let me go now," Angelus said in warning. She opened her eyes to look at him before stopping her movements.

"Angelus, do you wanna fuck me?" she asked sweetly, licking her tongue across her lips. He followed the movement with his eyes.

"What do you think?"

She smirked and leaned down to kiss him. Her tongue slid into his mouth, dueling with his own and she ran her fingers through his hair, holding his head against her own. After a long moment, she ended the kiss, pulling away from him.

"Well, I don't know. I won't know unless you tell me," she quipped playfully, and he gave her a lopsided smile.

"Fuck me, Buff."

"Happy to oblige," she said, pulling her shorts and panties down in one quick movement. Standing over him, she positioned him at her entrance, before sliding down on him. They both groaned in unison and he stared into her bright, green eyes as she lifted herself back up and sank back down on him.

"Damn, Angelus, this is…" she gasped as rode him. He nodded his head in agreement with her unspoken words. This was amazing. _She was amazing._ Buff was probably the best fuck he'd had in years. Angelus amended that sentiment as she sank down on him again. Buffy was probably the best fuck he'd ever had. Never had he fucked someone as warm, as tight and enticing as Buffy. She was the epitome of a bitch in heat as she rocked up and down on him and he felt that he could even forgive her for the chains, though he wasn't sure he wanted to. Buff may not deserve a beating after this performance, but God knows, he wanted to give her one.

"Baby, look at me," he murmured when she closed her eyes again, and her eyes popped open. She locked them with his own as she pressed her hips down against him.

He thrust his hips up to meet her own and she moaned and slid her fingers down to stroke her clit. She brushed her fingers against her clit hard, her strokes matching her thrusts. Angelus could feel how close she was and he was determined to hold his orgasm off until she had come. He was nothing if not chivalrous.

"Oh god, Angelus!" she shouted, coming around him. She panted hard and to Angelus surprise, she lifted herself off him and stood up next to the bed on shaky legs.

"Buff, I don't know what you think you're doing, but you better get your ass back over here," Angelus snapped. He was so hard and so close and she was…_walking away._

"Buff, did you fucking hear me?" he shouted and she stopped her progress and turned back to face him.

"Yes?" she asked sweetly, smiling at him.

"What the fuck, Buff? Come sit your ass back down on my cock and fuck me 'til I come," he stated, staring at her in frustration. _Did he have to fucking spell it out for her?_

She pressed her finger to her chin as if she was considering his statement, before placing her hand on her hips. "Um, I don't think so. I think I'm good over here."

"_Buff,_" he started but she cut him off with a laugh.

"I'm not gonna make you come, Angelus. Remember I said I'd think about it? Well, I thought about it, and I've decided not to. Don't feel bad, it's not you. I'm just not in the mood. You understand, right?"

Before he had a chance to respond, she opened the door to the bathroom and walked inside. For a moment, he was sure she was joking but when he heard the shower turn on, he cursed loudly, pulling at his chains harder than he had before. That _bitch._ He was going to kill her. He was going to beat her ass until she couldn't sit and then he was going to fuck her until she passed out. Stupid _bitch._ Stupid beautiful, evil bitch.

Twenty minutes later, he heard the shower turn off and Buffy singing to herself. He growled and shifted his hips, trying to ease the ache in his cock.

It was ten minutes before Buffy exited the bathroom, fully dressed in a pair of skin tight black jeans and a light green baby doll tee. She flipped her hair and tied it back in a loose ponytail before turning back to him.

"So, I called your friend. If he gets here when he said he will, you'll be unchained in about half-an-hour," she stated, picking up her stray clothes across the floor.

"Buff, I hope you know this isn't over," he said, pulling at the chains.

"Whatever, Angelus. You're not the first guy who's said that to me," she scoffed, throwing the clothes into her bag.

"See you later, lover," he replied simply and she rolled her eyes, walking out the door.

He pulled at the chains again before laying back on the bed. Half-an-hour later, like Buffy said, Gunn walked in. He watched the man's eyes travel from the chains at his wrists to his position on the bed and he glared at him.

"You gonna stare at me all night or are you gonna let me out, Charlie boy?" he snapped.

Gunn laughed loudly. "Really? When the girl said you were all tied up, I didn't think she meant literally. Damn, man. This is some funny shit."

Gunn continued to laugh as he pulled out a key and unlocked Angelus' hands. When Angelus was free he stretched his hands and sat up on the bed. Buffy had left his clothes on the chair and he smirked. How thoughtful of her.

"So," Gunn started behind Angelus as he pulled on his pants, "who was the girl on the phone? She the one that did this to you?"

When Angelus turned around, he took a step back. Angelus had that strange look in his eye that Gunn usually associated with him ripping throats out. Perhaps, asking him about this had not been the best idea.

"Buff," Angelus said slowly, "has a strange sense of humour."

Gunn nodded and Angelus turned back around and began to pull on the rest of his clothes. Gunn let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding and vowed to keep his mouth shut from now on. He rubbed his head. He didn't know who this 'Buff' was, but his prayers went out to her. She was going to need them.


	4. October 28: Gwen Raiden

**Title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**Author: **sentbyfools

**Chapter Title: **October 28: Gwen Raiden

**Chapter Summary: **Angelus does not like when people disrupt his plans.

**Thanks to skargasm, neoearthqueen30, leona, Edward Cullens Girl 4Ever 09, jaymartinez, faith *luvs* angel, TonjaluvsDB, n2elephants, vikinggoddss, Cryngle, Esmerada007, Kay8abc, Angel's Blue Eyed Girl, xan-merrick, tinkerbell1388, witchywoman9491, hipntrendy, jjagogo, raginspuffyh8ter, bangellover, darkslayer88, kimberKat, Angel-Buffy17 for ****reviewing. **

* * *

**October 28**

When Buffy walked into the building, she half-expected Angelus to be waiting for her. Actually, she more than half-expected it, Buffy had _known_ Angelus was going to be there.

Which was why, when he wasn't, she became confused.

She looked around warily, and then slowly began to walk towards the elevator. Angelus had to be here. He knew that she only took the highest paying jobs, and this one, was pretty high-paying. She also knew that he'd probably want revenge for their night at the hotel. Buffy had actually been expecting him days ago; he'd seemed pretty angry when she'd left him tied to the bed. She smiled to herself, visualizing the memory of Angelus chained, nude, to the bed.

The elevator opened, and she pressed the button for floor five, and the when the doors closed, she pried open the little gray panel to the right of the elevator keys. Buffy dropped the screws into her pocket and severed the bundle of wires inside the box. She'd already had Willow disable the building's camera systems remotely, but it never hurt to be cautious. She replaced the gray panel, and as the elevator 'pinged' and opened up to the fifth floor, she screwed in the last of the nails.

Buffy stepped out of the elevator cautiously. She'd begun to get an odd feeling, and she was never one to ignore her instincts. She stood in front of the elevator for about five minutes, but when the building remained as quiet and as empty as before, Buffy walked towards her destination. Linden Raiden was supposed to be the only one in today, and Buffy felt comfortable with using less stealth for this job. There wasn't anyone else for her to worry about, save for the maintenance, and Linden was so old, he wouldn't have heard her approach even if she'd been skipping down the hall.

When Buffy neared the door, she pulled out a knife and prepared to enter. Buffy turned the door knob slowly, but when the floor creaked behind her, she twisted around. The only thing she saw was a flash of dark, curly brown hair and something velvety, and then the pain came. She tried to fight back, but her body wouldn't move, and with a strangled cry, Buffy succumbed to the darkness.

* * *

Angelus had been watching Buffy for two days now. His Buff was good at hiding, but somehow it hadn't taken him that long to find her. He smirked to himself, knowing that Buffy had probably done that purposely. She was playing with him.

He straightened out the handcuffs in his lap, fingering the silver finished titanium. If she wanted to play, he could play as well. Buff wasn't nearly as good at these games as him, though he had to admit, she did have a certain touch that made her an interesting match.

Angelus continued to watch her as she moved about the room. It was a wonder she hadn't realized her shades were open, but then again he considered, maybe she just didn't really care. It wasn't like anyone would really notice the blonde woman sharpening her knives on the 23rd floor of the Marriott Hotel. People didn't care enough to worry about things besides their own useless and petty existences. Angelus placed the handcuffs on the bedside table and stood up and stretched before moving the binoculars back over his eyes. He didn't really care either way; he was just glad he hadn't needed to bug her room.

When Buffy began to strip, he leaned forward, pressing his fingers against the window pane. She removed her shirt, and slipped out of her bra. He licked his lips as his eyes traced the curve of her breast all the way down to her flat, muscle-toned stomach. He was hard within seconds, and he used his free hand to rub his crotch. Angelus cursed when Buffy moved behind the closed curtain, and he banged his hand against the window. He'd been suffering from blue balls ever since Buff had left him in her hotel room chained to the bedposts, and though Angelus was never one to deny himself release, he hadn't had a fuck in days. He knew it would making fucking Buff ten times better, but '_damn,'_ he thought as he willed his erection down, '_the excitement is gonna kill me.'_

When Buffy moved back into his view, she was dressed in a pair of tight pants and a white tank top. She slipped on a matching black jacket, and he watched as she fitted it with a couple of weapons of varying sharpness. Angelus frowned. There hadn't been any jobs in the last couple of days, but Buffy looked like she was about to go on the hunt.

He watched her grab a paper off the bed, and then throw it back down before walking out the door. Angelus removed his binoculars, and hurried out the door as well.

He had wanted to head her off, and then follow her to wherever she was going, but when he got outside, Buffy was already disappearing into the crowded streets.

Angelus followed her, pushing his way through the crowd, and she turned down a side lane. By the time, he got over there, though, she was already gone.

* * *

Buffy awoke to the rough pounding of headache and the sound of someone moving near her. She tried to stretch her hands, but they were handcuffed behind her and to her dismay, her back pocket-knife had been taken away. All of her weapons had been removed from her person, and Buffy bit her lip, hoping it was Angelus' doing.

"Wake up, Sleeping Beauty! It's a bright new day ─ and I've been waiting a long fucking time."

Buffy opened her eyes at the sharp, feminine voice. Of course, it was just her luck; the one time she wanted Angelus to be the one restraining her, and it was some psycho chick instead.

"I'd ask who you were, but I think a better question would be which family member of yours did I kill that's ticked you off so much?" Buffy said with sarcasm. She studied the tall, curly haired brunette. To the untrained eye, the woman looked relaxed and unfazed, but Buffy knew an assassin when she saw one. She resisted the urge to sigh. Not only was she restrained and weaponless, but she also had a rival assassin to deal with. _And her day had started out so well…_

"It's nice to meet you, too. I'm Gwen," the brunette said with a laugh. She locked eyes with Buffy as she walked towards her, and continued to speak. "And I know you're Buffy, so since we've gotten through the introductions…"

She leaned over, swinging, and slammed a glove covered fist into Buffy's face. The force of the blow pushed Buffy's head into the chair, and Buffy's nose began to bleed. Buffy rolled off the couch, dodging the next blow that came as she scanned the room for a knife, or something equally as sharp, to cut the rope around her ankles with. She rolled into Gwen, knocking her into the floor, and the sound of cursing as she rolled farther away made her smile through the blood and pain.

The sound of laughter behind her made her pause in her tracks, and she turned to see Gwen laughing as she picked herself off the floor.

"I can see why Angelus likes you so much. Feisty and skilled, you're just his type."

Gwen ran over to her, and before Buffy could react, grabbed her by the hair and dragged her to her feet. Buffy wobbled on her bound feet, but Gwen's grip on her kept her standing. Holding Buffy with one hand, Gwen removed her glove with her teeth.

"Don't worry; by the time I'm through with you, you won't be anyone's type."

Buffy tried to kick away from Gwen, but the rope binding her feet prevented her from doing so and only served to tighten Gwen's grip in her hair. Gwen laughed again and pressed her hand to Buffy's cheek. The pain was so intense, she couldn't even scream.

* * *

Angelus gritted his teeth, and did his best not to strangle the redhead. He doubted Buff would appreciate that.

But damn, the little bitch was grating on his nerves.

"You're Angelus," she stated again, and Angelus fingered his knife and reminded himself that he needed her to find Buffy.

"Willow," he sing-songed with a smile, "if you don't tell me where Buff is in the next ten seconds, I'm going to have to start cutting things off. Starting with your tongue."

She stared at him, eyes wide and he thought that "deer in headlights" adage never seemed more appropriate.

"10 seconds," he repeated, and she moved then, quickly seating herself before the desktop.

"Um…well, she's supposed to be on a job – I thought you always took the same jobs as her. At least that's what Faith said. She said that you and Buffy were friends now, but I'm pretty sure she meant that in a friends-with-benefits way and not a friends-friends way, though Buffy didn't say so, and it's not like I'd ever ask her, because you know, she'd probably kill me and – "

Angelus leaned over her and she cut off her inane babble with a short, high-pitched squeal.

He moved closer to her, his lips nearly pressed against her ear and asked, "What job?"

Willow squealed again and typed even faster than before, her fingers flying across the keys.

After a minute, the printer whirred on, and Angelus stepped away from her and picked up the printed information.

He glanced at the name on the paper and sighed heavily. He'd known the moment he'd met Gwen that he'd probably end up killing her, but damn, he hadn't wanted to do it this soon. He'd really been enjoying his time with her.

He shifted his gaze back towards Willow, who was staring up at him with wide green eyes. She was cute, if a little annoying, but he supposed with a little bit of make-up and a good gag, she'd make an interesting bed partner. At that thought, his brain brought up images of Buffy, naked and writhing on his bed.

He flashed Willow his patented "fuck-me" smile, and said "Thanks for the help; I really appreciate it," in his most charming tone. He watched her face glaze over and fought back a smirk. He knew what image she'd be getting off to tonight; he was _always_ happy to be the object of someone's fantasy.

With a little wave, he walked out the door.

* * *

Buffy watched Gwen test the needle and fought back the terror that threatened to overwhelm her. _Needles_. She hated needles, and years spent at that institution had taught her to fear them.

"See, it's not that I don't like you…well, actually, I don't. Everyone's always whispering about you and your skills, but I can't say that I see it. It didn't take any effort on my part to get the drop on you, and really, I'm still surprised that you fell for my contract. You have this reputation as this cold, calculating killer ─ and you haven't even lived up to it."

Buffy closed her eyes and wriggled her wrists. The handcuffs were cutting into them and she could already feel the sting of cuts. She really hoped this didn't scar.

"Are you done yet? I didn't even think people still did that anymore."

Buffy opened her eyes to see Gwen staring at her. "Did what?" Gwen asked, smiling.

"The I'm-so-amazing-I'm-going-to-tell-you-about-it-before-I-kill-you speech. I thought everyone figured out that it's only good for wasting time and giving the victim time to break free. Though, it could be just me."

Gwen's smile dropped from her face. Before she could react, Buffy slid one arm out from under her and slammed it into Gwen's face. Gwen fell back out of her chair, and Buffy rolled herself off the couch, heading for the door.

She dodged the table and when she heard Gwen curse behind her, she rolled back and pushed the table. It toppled to the floor, shattering glass around her. She covered her face and when the spray ended, grabbed a large piece and began to cut the bonds at her feet. Gwen lay on the floor beside her, and when she groaned and started to stand, Buffy cut faster. The rope fell away at her feet and she tried to stand, but Gwen's hand caught around her ankle and dragged her across the glass-covered floor.

Buffy flipped over, ignoring the shards cutting into her back. Kicking out, she dislodged Gwen's hand from her ankle and stood, aiming for the door. It was lucky that Gwen's hands had been covered. Buffy didn't know how she managed to shoot electricity through her hands and she wasn't keen on finding out more about it.

She reached the door and wrapped her hand around the handle, but before she could turn it, Gwen moved beside her. A flash of uncovered skin was all Buffy saw before Gwen shocked her again. Gwen watched Buffy slump to the floor and resisted the urge to kick her unconscious body.

Gwen cursed and rubbed at the bruise forming along her jaw. She really should've used the drugs, but she wanted to try out her new..._power_. She was going to have to talk to them about increasing the voltage. If she wanted to use get paid for this, she needed to have it knock people out for longer than an hour.

She picked her glove off from the floor and pulled it back on. It was covered in blood and glass, but Gwen didn't care at the moment. She didn't want to kill the bitch before she could get paid. Lifting Buffy's unconscious form up, she dragged her across the room, back towards the couch. When she'd dropped her on the seat, she walked to her bedroom. This time the bitch would wake up restrained to the chair, with her ankles cuffed to her feet. Gwen smiled at the image and began to search through her closet. It was only after she'd found the cuff set she was looking for that she noticed the man sitting on her bed.

"Hi Gwen."

Gwen's smile melted off her face. She'd seen that look on Angelus' face before; right after this drunken valet had crashed his Mercedes into a light pole. Later that night, she watched him rip out the valet's tongue with a pair of pliers.

"Angelus," she started, fingering her gloves. She jumped when he grabbed her by the wrists and pulled her to him, successfully preventing her from removing the gloves.

"That's a nifty little trick you've acquired. Oh Gwen, now if only you'd told me about it before you decided to go off and try it out. I might've even been interested," he said. He wrapped one hand around her wrists, squeezing them tightly and slid the other into his pocket. Gwen's eyes widened when he pulled out the knife.

"Gwen, Gwen, Gwen." He let out a dramatic sigh, before plunging the knife into her throat. He released her, and she fell to the floor, gurgling and clutching at the knife. He stepped over her and exited the room.

Buffy was still passed out on the couch and he took in her whole form. He'd come in just as Gwen was shocking Buffy into unconsciousness, and he had retreated to the bedroom and waited for her there. He hadn't wanted to risk Buffy anymore when she wasn't awake to defend herself. She was covered in little cuts and he moved his hands over her. The worst of the injuries were her wrists and he glanced at the floor, noting the blood covered handcuffs. It was just like his Buff to use her own blood to wriggle out of her cuffs.

He picked her up and carried her out the door.

* * *

Buffy woke up and immediately tensed. She'd been moved, and she noted, her clothes had been changed. She wasn't restrained though, and her cuts were bandaged and it was that detail that made her open her eyes.

"Angelus, what the fuck?" she yelled when she saw him. She was in a bed and he sat at the end of it, watching her.

"And here I thought you'd be happy to see me," he said, pouting. He pulled her against him when she tried to hit him. "Hey, hey, Buff. Now you don't want to reopen those cuts, do you?"

"Fuck you," she growled, clawing at him. "Was that all a part of your …**revenge** scheme or something? Because that psycho bitch electrocuted me with her **_finger_**s…and if you think that I'm not going to kill you for that, you're wrong!"

Angelus slapped her hands away from his face and pushed her down onto the bed. He leaned over Buffy, spreading her thighs with his knees and pinning her arms to her sides.

"You're not even making any sense, Buff. I think all that electricity addled you. To answer your question, no, that was not a part of any of my plans for you. What kind of person do you take me for?"

She struggled against him before sighing and giving up. "Then if that wasn't a part of your plans or whatever, then where is she?"

He stared at her pointedly. "Do you really have to ask?"

She stared back at him and spat, "I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want an answer."

"Gwen's…not going to be bothering you again."

She gave him a careful look before closing her eyes. He watched the thoughts flit across her face and wondered what she was thinking about.

"So, can you let me up now? I promise not to kill you," she asked, opening her eyes.

He gave her a lazy smile. "I don't know, Buff. I kinda like you like this, all spread out in my bed."

She smiled back at him, before wrenching her hand out of his grasp. "Well, if you like being able to pee standing up, I suggest you let me up," she said, grabbing his dick through his pants and squeezing lightly.

He sat up and she removed her hands. "Geez, Buff, you're supposed to handle with care, you know?"

She rolled over, out of his arms. She took that moment to gaze around the room. It was darkly and expensively furnished. The walls were painted a dark burgundy and the mahogany armoire and desk set off the color nicely. She slid her hands along the sheets. _Silk_. Exactly what she expected from Angelus.

"You like what you see?" he asked, smirking. She looked him up and down. He wasn't wearing a shirt, which she suspected had to do with the fact that she was wearing it instead, and he was dressed in a pair of black boxers that hugged his waist.

"It could use a little work."

Angelus chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair. "Oh, Buffy. What am I going to do with you?"

She frowned. "That's a good question. What is this? Do we fight now? Is this the part where you chain me up because I distinctly remember you threatening to do that a few days ago when I left you chained to that bed."

He looked her over, considering. "You look like some kind of assault victim. No, I think I'm going to save that for another time."

"Meaning?" she asked, raising an eyebrow in question.

"Meaning, _Buffy_, that I'm offering you a truce. Since, you're in no shape to actually fight me, I'm giving you the opportunity to not have to do so, though, this will only last until you leave here. After that, well, I'm thinking a little fighting, a little bondage, and a whole lot of me beating your ass red until I decide to fuck you."

She rolled her eyes again. "Fine," she said. She really wasn't in the mood to be fighting him, and well if he was okay with that, she wasn't going to argue.

"So…now what?" she asked, glancing at him. He smiled down at her. "I don't know, Buff. I was thinking a quick fuck and a nap."

"Sounds like a plan. Have fun with that," she said, turning over on her side. Her body was already heating up at the thought and she really needed to learn how to control her hormones. Or maybe she needed, as Faith would say, to knock boots more regularly, because seriously, Angelus was making her crazy and it was starting to get annoying.

"Buffy."

He was silent for a few moments and she turned to look at him. "What?" she asked, when he didn't say anything.

"I'm just wondering how long you're going to make me wait before you spread those pretty thighs for me."

"Start high," she supplied, turning away from him. He leaned over her, though, and pushed her flat on the bed. Before she could push him away, he slid in between her legs, grinding his erection against her panty clad crotch. She moaned and wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him down.

"Oh, Buff, when will you learn that resisting me is pointless?" he asked, wrapping his hands in her hair before kissing her. She moaned against his lips and when he finally pulled away, her lips were bruised and swollen.

He moved his hands down and began to unbutton her shirt as she rocked against him. When her hand worked its way between their fused bodies, he paused his movements and groaned.

"Fuck, Buff," he panted. She smirked up at him before closing her eyes. She moaned as her hand slid against her clit, and she slid her fingers inside herself, thrusting them in and out. When her hand was abruptly pulled away, she growled. "What the fuck, Angelus?"

"Now, now, Buff. You're in my home and you'll play by my rules. You don't get to come until I say so," he replied. She glared at him, but didn't fight him as he removed her shirt.

"Oh God," she moaned when his mouth covered one of her breasts. He sucked hard and she cried out as his tongue slid across her nipple over and over again. Gripping the sheets with her hands, she bucked against him. Angelus smiled against her breast and pulled away before moving to the next one. He was hard as a rock already, but he wanted her to be screaming for him before he fucked her.

"You want me to fuck you, Buff?" he asked, pulling his head up to stare at her. Her face was flushed and her eyes were closed. He felt his cock harden even more at the sight. Buffy was too sexy when she was riled up.

She whined when he ground into her, but when she tried to pull him down for a kiss, he resisted.

"You didn't answer my question, Buff."

Her eyes shot open and she glared daggers at him. "Fuck you."

"Yes, Buff. That is exactly what I want you to do, but I want you to beg for it first. I know you know how."

She continued to glare at him and he started to pull away. He knew he wouldn't actually leave her there, not when he was this hard and she was lying in his bed looking like a porn star in heat. But she didn't know that.

"Fuckmeplease," she spat quickly and he smirked inwardly.

"You're going to have to speak a little slower," he said, "I didn't quite catch that."

"Angelus, if you don't fuck me now…"

He laughed as he moved down her body, licking her stomach. "Aww, Buffy. If you really wanted it so bad, you could've just asked."

She whimpered in response as he reached his destination. He slid her panties down and licked her clit slowly. Sliding two fingers inside her, he thrust them in and out as he licked her all over. When she began to rock against him, he pulled away.

"Angelus, please," she begged and he looked up in surprise at the hoarse plea. He stared at her in amazement. Her eyes were half-closed and he could see the beginnings of tears in them.

Shaking himself out of the stupor, he quickly shed his boxers. He lined his cock at her entrance and leaned over her.

"Shh, baby," he murmured against her lips as he pressed inside of her. "Damn baby, you're so hot."

He thrust inside her slowly, developing a languid rhythm. She clawed at his chest as he slid inside her, stretching and filling her with each stroke of his cock. When his fingers brushed her clit, she pulled him down and kissed him hungrily, her tongue tangling with his as she pushed her hips against him.

"Oh God, I'm so close," she panted against his lips as his pace quickened. She could feel the tingling sensation building up low in her belly and she rocked her hips against him, meeting each of his thrusts as she searched out her orgasm. With each thrust, his fingers dragged against her clit, pushing her closer and closer to the edge of pleasure.

When he leaned his head down and took her nipple into his mouth, she cried out and came, tightening around him. Angelus groaned loudly, his thrusts becoming shorter and harder. The clutching heat of her orgasm around him was incredible, and he could barely control himself. Pounding her harder, he worked his fingers against her clit, intent on making her come again.

"Angelus…please, please, please," she chanted as another orgasm built inside her. Her body was on fire and she could no longer tell where she began and Angelus started. He fit so perfectly inside her and every single one of her nerves seemed to scream out for him. Clutching against him, she pressed her mouth to his chest, leaving bite marks and hickies all over the expanse of skin.

"Fuck Buff," Angelus groaned when her mouth found his neck and when she began to suck hard against his throat, he lost it.

"Oh God," he moaned, pressing against her as he flooded her with his seed. He could feel her tightening around him, and he continued to rub her clit as she came around him. When he could finally open his eyes again, he lifted himself off her and rolled over on the bed.

"Dammit Buff, but that was good," he commented, panting.

"I think I'll take that nap now," she said softly, pressing against his back. He nodded in agreement, too overwhelmed to offer a verbal reply. He turned over so that he was facing her and saw that her eyes were already closed. Throwing an arm over her, he closed his eyes, smiling.

He could get used to this.


	5. December 8: pt 1

**title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**chapter title: **December 8 pt. 1

**author: **sentbyfools

**chapter summary: **Buffy takes a well deserved vacation.

**a/n: **Okay so it's been 2 years since I last updated this, and I apologize to anyone who's been waiting for an update. I lost all inspiration for this fic, but it's finally back. I'm trying to get back into the swing of writing BtVS fic, so bear with me. Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I would name names, but screwed with my email alerts.

**story notes: **the tense might be iffy in some places as I'm used to writing in the present tense now. If you notice any errors, please point them out. Also, this is part 1 of a 2 part chapter, so the next part should be up within the next couple of days and then this fic will be updated every Friday.

* * *

**December 8**

What bothered her the most was the tension. It wasn't the sexual tension, because that implied that they let the fact that they could kill each other stop them from fucking on every surface possible. They fought, they fucked, they got out it out of their systems ─ mostly ─ and then they did it all over again. No, what bothered Buffy was the emotional tension. She hadn't felt so off her game around a person in years, and it was, if she had to admit it, annoying as shit.

She contemplates this as she rubbed her right leg down, covering it in suntan lotion. It's hot out, expected, because Antigua is hot, but she considered pulling out the umbrella. She wanted to tan, not burn.

"Buffy," Willow said, her voice trembling.

"Yeah?" She didn't glance over to see what was wrong. She was fairly certain she already knew. Buffy continued rubbing down her leg, moving down to her feet. Her nail polish glared in the sunlight, the emerald colour sparkling.

"Hey, Buffy," Angelus whispered into her ear, leaning over her shoulder.

"Wow, you managed to actually say my name. I'm impressed," she said with as much sarcasm as she could muster. She was tired, and she really didn't want to get into anything with Angelus. She knew why he was there, expected him to show up even earlier, but still she'd been hoping he wouldn't show up at all. _A girl could dream, right?_

"You don't sound like you are. Buff, you can be a little more sincere," he said, straightening behind her.

Angelus came to a stand in front of her, and he looked good, a light tan on his normally pale skin and his black swimming shorts riding low on his waist. She felt hot, and it wasn't from the sun.

"And we've regressed," she said, shaking her head at him. She really just wanted him to leave before she did something she'd regret. Beach sex isn't all it's cracked up to be. Sand in uncomfortable places, and she wasn't keen on experiencing that again. She started to move on to rub suntan on her other leg, but Angelus stopped her, crouching in front of her and grabbing the suntan lotion out of her hand.

"Need a hand?" he asked, and she leant back in her seat. She didn't bother with a response because he wasn't going to stop no matter what she said, and she wasn't in the mood for a pointless fight. Not when it was likely she'd need her strength later when he decided to get back at her for her stunt two months ago.

"Man, I love your legs," he said. He rubbed lotion into his hands and then stroked her legs, starting from her feet and moving upwards.

His touch was warm and soft, belying the danger in them, and if he wanted to break her leg right then, she wouldn't have been able to stop him. She'd left herself open, but she'd had worse than a broken leg before. Besides even wearing the skimpy bikini she had on, she would never leave herself so unprotected.

Buffy fingered the knife embedded in the deck chair idly as she relaxes into the feeling of Angelus' hands moving up her leg. It felt good, and she wasn't going to resist that.

"Didn't you say I was going to be "punished" the next time you saw me? Well, this is punishment enough isn't it?" she said, eyes closed and head back.

"You don't seem like you're being punished," he murmured, his voice husky. She smiled. At least she wasn't the only one affected by their closeness. Buffy frowned at the thought; she didn't want to feel this way around him. She'd prefer it if all she wanted was to rip his throat out, and she thought back to the short amount of time that it was all she wanted to do. It felt like a lifetime ago. At least he was a good lay.

"I'm good at pretending. You should already know that," she said, although she couldn't help the moan she made when his hands moved farther up her thigh.

"I should," he agreed, and she opened her eyes when his hands slipped under her bikini bottoms. She grabbed the knife in the chair, and placed it over his hand, not quite cutting but enough to make the threat clear.

"Remove it or lose it."

"So cruel, Buffy," he said.

She studied him critically for a moment, ignoring the way he studied her back.

"Why are you here?" she asked him after a moment.

"Because ─" he grinned at her widely, "Because I want to be. Besides you're here. What could be a better reason than that?"

"Fuck off," she said without any heat. She was more amused than annoyed.

"As you wish," he said, bowing dramatically, and she had to laugh at that. He disappeared from where he came from, and Buffy leaned back in her chair, getting comfortable.

It was quiet for about ten minutes until Willow said, "What the fuck was that?"

Buffy sat up, craning her neck to look at Willow. "Language, Will? And what do you mean?"

"You didn't even ─ oh no Buffy. You _like_ him. You actually **like** him."

Buffy shook her head because she hadn't liked anyone since she was fifteen, and that ended when she burned him alive in the school gym with the cheerleader he'd been cheating on her with. She'd been attracted to for long periods of time, but sex is sex, hormones, biological imperative and all that. It was the same thing with Angelus except raised to a higher extent.

"I don't like him. I just like fucking him," Buffy clarified, and it was the end of the conversation except Faith showed up then, dripping wet from surfing.

"Like fucking who, B?" she asked.

"Angelus," Willow said, "And she _likes _him."

"Really?" Faith said, raising a brow. "Good on you, B. He's a keeper."

"He's not a keeper. Or someone who would let someone keep them," Buffy said, her tone sharp.

Faith cut her off before she could continue though, said, "Oh you know this, B? And you say that you just like fucking him."

"This conversation is over," Buffy said, and stood up, stretching. She was done with discussing Angelus, and not even her desire for a tan made her want to stay. She didn't want to have to hurt either one of them, not on their vacation, and Buffy was quickly reaching into the territory of physical violence.

"Whatever you say, B."

"It is over," she said, staring at Faith and Willow coolly.

"Fine, Buffy," Faith said, staring back at her. Luckily for them, they knew when it's time to quit. They wouldn't bring it up again, at least not around Buffy.

They could gossip about it all they want to each other, Buffy didn't care just so long as she didn't have to hear it.

* * *

"Are we really doing this now?" she asked, when she entered her room and saw Angelus sitting on the chair by the bathroom. She'd been hoping she'd at least be able to get in a shower first, put some real clothes on before he arrived. Buffy calculated how long it would take for her to reopen the door. _Too long_, and she was probably fucked.

In more ways than one likely. The thought thrilled her in a way she didn't want to analyze, so she pushed it away, staring at Angelus.

She watched as his hands idly stroked a pair of handcuffs strewn across his lap. Handcuffs, _good,_ she could get out of those easily enough.

"Would you prefer this happen later?" he said with humour in his voice.

Buffy had a knife tucked into her beach bag and a gun in the bedside table. She'd go for the knife first, use the gun as a last resort. She wasn't a big fan of them anyway, never had been.

"I'm covered in sand and in a bikini."

"I noticed," Angelus replied, giving her a long onceover. "It looks good on you, but why you'd wear something like that when you're not even expecting me is a wonder."

His tone was casual, but she could hear the threat underneath it. Of course, he'd be fucking possessive.

"I'm always expecting you," she said before she realized how the words sound, like she'd wear things for him.

He smirked at her, noticing the implication of her words as well, and said, "Well, if you're always expecting me..."

He trailed off coming to a stand, and Buffy reached for the knife in her bag. He reached her first though, and she must've really been off her game because he had her arm behind her back before she could even react. He pulled it up until she whimpered from the pain. She could feel the bikini stretching beyond it's give. _Fuck him and his fucking timing._

"Giving in so soon, Buff? That's not like you," he said.

"I know," she replied, elbowing him in the stomach with her free arm, and using the hip lodged between his thighs to force him back to the wall. She couldn't quite head butt him, he's too tall for that, but when he hit the wall, he released her arm. She turned around, grabbed him by the shoulders, and kneed him hard in the groin.

It's wasn't enough to keep him down for long, but long enough for her to make it to the outside deck. The door was locked when she got to it, and Buffy wasn't going to be jumping through glass anytime soon, so she dove for the bedside table instead, trying to get a hold of her gun. Again, Angelus reached her first though, and he pulled her up by her hair, causing her to curse from the pain.

"Fuck you," she said, when he grabbed one hand and cuffed it. _If he'd only release that one she could smack him with the cuffs_. He slid a leg around hers, causing her to fall forward and it allowed him to grab the other arm, and then he had both her hands cuffed behind her back.

He grabbed her by the hair again, pulled her to the bed and she went with him because she's kind of attached to her hair.

"That was too easy, Buff. It's as if you wanted me to win," he said, frowning at her as he pushed her on the bed.

"This is my vacation, I'm in a fucking bikini, and you're not supposed to be here, so I'm a little off my game, yeah?"

He leaned over her, stretching an arm out behind her head, and said, "I thought you always expected me, but whatever helps you sleep at night, lover."

He stood up before she could head butt him, and with the handcuffs around her wrists she couldn't sit up fast enough before he returned from the other side of the room. It did give her enough time to notice the cuffs around the bedposts of her bed, and she pushed to the center, hoping it would put enough distance between her and them that she'd have enough time to wriggle out of the handcuffs.

"I don't know why you're trying. Well, I do know why ─ You can't just give up, it's not like you. But Buffy, Buffy, _Buffy_, I've already won. It'll be easier on you if you, well, it's not going to be easy on you at all."

She rolled her eyes at him as he crawled on to the bed. He picked up one of the ankle cuffs, and Buffy kicked out at him, missing, and falling back down on the bed. Her missed kick only served to bring her leg into cuffing distance.

"You're just making this too simple for me, Buff," he murmured, locking her leg into the first cuff. She rolled, still trying to wriggle her hands free.

The cuts from the attack by Gwen Raiden had finally healed a week ago, and she hissed at him for causing her to reopen them.

"Fuck you."

"Don't do that," he said idly, grabbing her other leg and forcing it down. He attached the other cuff to her ankle, leaving her lying spread-eagle on the bed, and continued, "We wouldn't you to scar."

"You talk too much," she said as he moved between her spread legs. She pushed herself up, wrapping her cuffed hands around his neck, cutting into him with the sharp edges.

"Fuck," he said. He punched her in the stomach and slipped out of her grasp.

"Nice try, lover," he said, rubbing his hand over the back of his neck.

Angelus moved back over to her, and grabbed her by the handcuffs before Buffy could try anything else. She couldn't see what he was doing behind her, but she could guess. When she heard the click, she knew her suspicion was correct.

She was trapped. For how long it'd be she couldn't tell, but Buffy could be patient.

"So are you going to get this over with? I'm already bored of the whole bondage thing. I see now why you were so eager to get out of those cuffs. That and the whole orgasm denial. Did you have fun dealing with that later?"

She paused, smiling at him as he appeared again in her view, and said sweetly, "Did you think of me?"

He grinned back at her, and said, "Not that I'm not enjoying your company, Buff, but I have something I need to take care of. You sit tight there, I'll be back in a jiff."

"Don't stay gone too long. Don't keep me waiting," she said, pouting as she began to tug at the chains, testing their strength.

"Titanium," he said, noticing her movements, "This shouldn't take that long. Don't go hurting yourself while I'm gone."

When he turned and left the room, Buffy began working on wriggling her hands out of the chains. It wasn't that she truly minded being in the chains, it was just the principal of the matter. Anyone could've walked in and taken her out, though she was certain Angelus wouldn't leave her without protection. He was possessive like that, and Buffy had to admit that she liked it. Faith had always said was secretly into the kinkier things, and Buffy was starting to realize that Faith might've been on to something.

In the position she was in, she couldn't reach the pin she had tucked into her bikini top so her only option was to once again use her blood as lubricant to get out of the cuffs.

It wasn't really much of an option.

"Fuck," she said because she was well and truly fucked.

* * *

Angelus watched the man for five minutes before he revealed himself. Though he'd told Buffy that he'd been down there for her, the real reason that he was here was for the man twitching in the corner booth of dingy little diner.

"What do you have for me, Merl?"

"Angelus ─" Merl recoiled as Angelus took the seat across from him in the booth.

"Stop cringing before I give you a reason to actually do so," Angelus said. The threat was real, but his heart's wasn't really in it. He was more interested in the Slayer tied to her bed than he was in the possibility of having to remove Merl's fingernails one by one.

"It's about the girl. Her last job was for something called the Initiative," Merl said, glancing around the room as if Angelus wasn't the most dangerous person in it.

_Must be something big to shake Merl up like this,_ Angelus thought, staring around the room. There's only a few workers from the hotel in the diner, and Angelus' already vetted them so there was no reason to worry about the conversation being overheard.

He was getting the feeling though of something, something he couldn't quite place.

"So, what's this initiative?" he said, staring over Merl's shoulder towards the door.

"It's ─" and that's all Merl got out before he chokes on his soup. His face turned blotchy, a red and then a deep green before he collapsed into the bowl.

Angelus checked his pulse, fingers brushing over a small pin lodged in Merl's throat. It figures that someone that gave a girl the power to electrocute someone with her fingers wouldn't be squeamish about killing off a rat like Merl.

_It's a pity though_, Angelus thought, removing the pin from Merl's neck and placing it in his pocket, _I rather liked him._

Angelus considered it a wonder that they didn't try to take him out as well, and he filed it away as something to look into. When someone doesn't kill you when they should, it means they want something from you, and Angelus was going to find out what exactly the "Initiative" wanted from him.

He didn't wait for the staff to notice Merl's death, just slipped out the door as quietly as he came in. He looked to the East where the pin shot came from, but he doesn't see anything or anyone and he has more important things to deal with than running after a rival assassin.

His Slayer is waiting.


	6. December 8: pt 2

**title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**chapter title: **December 8 pt. 2

**author: **sentbyfools

**chapter summary: ** Angelus enacts his punishment, and Buffy goes home to a guest.

**a/n: ** Thank you to **ba2006, sinangeled, annekebbf4ever, and Tina **for the reviews!

**story notes: **same note as before - the tense might be iffy in some places as I'm used to writing in the present tense now. If you notice any errors, please point them out.

* * *

"Back so soon?" she said when Angelus reentered the room. He looked cool and collected, but Buffy could recognize that something was up. She filed that information away as something for Xander to look into later.

"I couldn't stay away."

He walked over to the bed and placed his hand on her thigh. She couldn't move to throw it off, but she did push her leg as far into the mattress as possible. His hand was cold despite the heat outside, and Buffy shivered.

"Cold," she said, when he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Sorry about that, Buff," he said, removing his hand, "I wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable."

She rolled her eyes. "What's this then?"

"This ─ well, you already know," he said. His grin left his face and was replaced with a hard look. Buffy shivered again but it wasn't from the cold.

"I don't like to be tied up, lover. And I especially don't like to be left unsatisfied," he said, his tone light but threatening.

"That sounds like a personal issue," Buffy said, deflecting.

He grinned then, and walked over grabbing her by the arm hard enough to leave marks. Buffy didn't cry out; she wouldn't show him any weakness. She could bear this. She'd suffered worse.

"What am I going to do with you, lover? You never know when to keep your mouth shut."

He paused, reached into his pocket with the hand not gripping her arm, and pulled out a gag. Buffy rolled her eyes, and shut her mouth tightly. If he thought she was going to make this easy for him.

"Oh don't clam up now, Buffy," he said, releasing her arm and smiling down at her. "We were just starting to have some fun."

She didn't care if he stuffed the gag in her mouth, she wasn't going to let him mock her. "So this is your idea of a good time?"

In one swift movement, he lifted her head off the pillow and wrapped the gag around her face, stuffing it in her open mouth.

"Always," he said, staring down at her. "Now aren't you a sight for sore eyes."

Buffy just shifted her leg in response. Her body was starting to fall asleep, held too long in such an uncomfortable position.

Angelus noticed. "Don't worry. You won't be in that position for much longer. Just give me a moment, sweet heart."

_A new nickname,_ Buffy thought, and frowned when she realized she'd rather have him say her name than call her by anything else.

Angelus walked away, and returned with the keys to her cuffs. He jangled them in his hands as he looked down at her barely covered body.

"Don't make this harder on yourself, Buffy," he said, "I'm going to release your legs now."

She bit the gag trying to let out a response and groaned when she remembered she couldn't. She was drooling around it now, and she couldn't figure out why he would find that attractive at all.

He reached over the bed and unlocked one leg then another, and Buffy was too busy trying to induce feeling back into her leg to try anything. The blood took a long time to return to her legs, long enough that Angelus was able to unlock the other leg without so much as a half-hearted kick for Buffy.

"It seems I've subdued the beast," he said, and grinned at her as he moved up her body.

_Only temporarily_, she thought and let him lift her and turn her on her stomach without putting up a fight. The new position allowed her to notice the cuffs at the top of her bed, and despite herself Buffy was impressed that he'd managed to install them in the short time she was away from her room. _Angelus truly is one of the best, but so am I, and I'm not going to let him forget it_.

He removed the handcuffs from her wrists, and when he did, Buffy jumped up, pulled the gag out of her mouth and rolled off the bed. She heard him tsk at her, even as she reached under the mattress looking for one of her many knives.

"Buffy, Buffy, Buffy," he said, his tone mocking, "Didn't you think I might make sure to check over the room thoroughly. You've been underestimating me since the moment we met."

"True," she said, agreeing, as she lifted a cut area of the carpet under the bed with her foot, her toe brushing against the knife she hid there. "But you haven't given me much reason not to."

She dove for the knife just as he jumped across the bed, landing on the same side as her. Buffy cut out at him, causing him to jump back away from her, and she stood up, brandishing the small knife in front of her.

"I noticed that one too, you know," he said with a slow confidence that let Buffy know that it was true.

"Why didn't you take it then?" she asked, moving on the balls of her feet. The blood still hadn't quite returned to all her limbs, and it was throwing her off.

"Because I love fucking you," he said, "and I love beating the crap out of you."

He moved forward, angling so that her stab with the knife went into his shoulder and not his throat where she was aiming. She tried to pull it out, but before she could, he grabbed her by the arm, swinging her so that she hit the glass deck doors. She felt it crack when she hit, and she groaned, feeling the cuts opening in her back.

He pulled the knife out of his shoulder, and Buffy didn't have to time to regain her footing before the knife, still covered in his blood, was against her throat.

"Gonna come quietly or do I have to start marring that pretty skin?"

She sighed dramatically, said, "You've won. Do with me as you please, master."

"Master -" He grinned at her, and continued, "I like the sound of that."

"You would."

"Stand," he ordered, and she did, careful of the knife at her throat.

"Kneel on the bed, hands on the bedspread."

She frowned at him, but did as she was told.

"Like this?" she asked, sounding bored.

"Perfect," he said, and she felt the wet blade slide against her back. She smiled at that, glad to know that at least she wasn't the only one in pain.

He walked over to the top of the bed and with the hand not holding the blade against her, he pulled at the cuff on the right side and snapped it around her right hand. He did the same for the left side. Buffy sighed when he was done. At least she could lift her hands this time, though the fact that he wanted her on her knees was worrisome. He used the knife to cut her bikini from her body and _why is it so damn cold in here?_.

"This is getting boring," she said, shivering slightly, "When are we going to start having some fun?"

"This isn't a game, Buff," he said, pulling her back by the hair.

"Of course it is," she replied, "it's one of my favourites."

She smirked and waited for his response. The punch to the mattress was all the confirmation she needed to know she was getting to him.

"Upset?" she asked sweetly.

He let go of her hair and stood up off the bed to face her. He was smiling, and Buffy knew that it wasn't a good sign.

"Only a little, Buff, but I'll be better soon."

He leaned down and kissed her hard enough to bruise before he moved his lips to her throat. She moaned softly when he began to place openmouthed kisses along her throat, sucking on the sensitive skin.

"You taste like the sea," he said in-between kisses.

"Obviously," she panted out, her brain mostly focused on the sensations running through her body. The bruise on her stomach from his earlier punch was painful, and so were the cuts on her back, but so was the way he touching her skin, a pain built of pleasure.

"Is this my punishment?" she asked after awhile, "A little light bondage and some necking?"

She could feel him smirking into her neck, his laughter only confirming the feeling.

"This? This is me enjoying myself," Angelus stated, shifting so that he could angel his head even lower.

"I haven't even begun to punish you yet."

She yawned, wishing she could stretch her arms over her head for effect. "Feel free to start whenever you're ready."

"So pushy," he whispered into her chest. He sucked on the expanse of skin right above her breasts. Buffy felt herself go wet, and she wished he would move lower. As if reading her mind, he moved away, coming to a stand.

He moved behind her and Buffy heart his soft footfalls on the plush carpet, and then the sound of a bag opening. Angelus returned to her side and placed a hand on her back. The touch stung, but only slightly, the tiny cuts on her back already closing up. She had to crane her neck to look at him, and noticed that in his hand, he held a whip ─ a cat. Buffy felt a slight surge of fear at the sight. Someone like Angelus would no doubt know how to wield a weapon like that expertly.

"Do you know what this is, Buff?" he asked, fingers lightly stroking her back.

"No idea, why don't you share with the class?" Her words came out hasty, her tone off-key and she cursed herself for the show of weakness.

"Liar," he said, digging his fingers into her skin painfully, "Now, come on, Buffy. I've seen the artful way you've used it on some of your kills."

"Been stalking me for awhile haven't you? I haven't used a cat in a long time. So what are you going to do the same to me? Finally going through on your death threat?"

"I never -" he started to say, but Buffy cut him off.

She let out a short laugh, said, "I seem to recall you threatening to kill me when I left you chained up in that hotel room."

He raised a brow at her. "I only said it wasn't over, Buff."

She raised a brow right back at him. "Isn't that the same thing for you?"

He grinned at her again, his tone amused when he said, "Oh not when it come to you, lover."

She smiled at him. "Oh gee, now you're making me blush. I feel so special."

"Oh you are, sweetheart, you really are," he said stepping behind her and out of her line of sight.

"Now ass up, Buff."

Buffy rolled her eyes and said, "You really think I'm just going to lift my ass and let you beat me. You really are crazy."

"Only for you," he said, and then the cat hit the back of her legs with a force that wasn't enough to break skin, but enough to bruise it. She hissed at the sting, and hissed again when Angelus' fingers brushed over the injured skin.

"Sorry, did that hurt?" he said, his voice gentle but mocking.

Buffy bit back a curse and replied, "I've had worse."

It wasn't a total lie, she'd had worse, but it didn't mean she wanted to experience that kind of pain again.

"Why must you be so difficult, lover?" he said, stroking his hand over her legs lightly. The spot ached when he touched it, but the touch was so gentle that it ached in a good, soothing way.

"Can't we just get along?"

She rolled her eyes, tried to resist the urge to push back against his hand, and said, "Considering the fact that you've chained me to my bed, I'd say it was you being difficult, not me."

The hit to her ass was unexpected. Buffy bit her lip so she wouldn't cry out, the blood welling in her mouth.

"Don't talk out of line," he said. Buffy wasn't sure whether it was the pain playing tricks on her or whether it was just Angelus, but he sounded far away, like he was thinking of something else entirely. She felt a surge of newfound anger at that. If he was going to do this, at least he should put his whole effort into it.

"So, this is supposed to be you training me?" she asked, clutching the sheets in her tied up hands. Holding herself up was already making her weary; she wasn't sure how long she'd last in this position.

"No, he said in the same faraway tone, "this is."

Buffy gasped when wet fingers brushed over her pussy, sliding over her swollen clit before dipping between her wet folds. He rubbed at them softly for a moment before moving two of his fingers inside her. Despite the pain from the cat, Buffy was still wet from Angelus' earlier kisses. His fingers slid in easily, and he fucked her with them. It was a slow pace that made her burn from the inside out, and she could feel the blush moving up her body. Suddenly, the room was much warmer, too warm. She was hot all over, and she gritted her teeth to keep from moaning aloud. It wasn't long until even that failed at holding back her cries of pleasure, and she was _so close_. All he had to do was brush her clit one more time and ─

She groaned in protest when he removed his fingers, and then yelped in surprise and pain when the cat slapped against her ass one, two, three times in succession. Buffy was so sensitive so the pain was excruciating, and she was starting to feel like she might not be able to bear this.

"Buffy, you are so sweet," Angelus said. He rubbed his fingers over her abused skin. She heard the bed shift and then he placed one hand on her stomach and the other on her leg. Before she knew it, his mouth was on her, licking and sucking and confusing her senses. Her body couldn't decide what to focus on the pleasure or the pain; everything was all muddled up.

"Fuck," she said, and kept saying as Angelus alternated between fingering and licking her, and beating her with the whip.

It was a long time before Buffy finally gave in, letting out the smallest whisper of "Please."

"Did you say something, Buff," he asked, slowly sliding his index finger in and out of her.

_Fuck_.

She bit her lip, and then decided against holding it in, said, "Please let me come."

"No," he said simply.

"I hate you," she said, wishing she could press her face into the pillow. He kept building this fire inside of her and then letting it fade out, only to bring it back again in between whipping her. Her ass was probably all red at this point, he'd hit every inch of it.

"I know, baby," he said, and then placed a kiss on her ass. It burned and she groaned, clutching at the sheets and digging her nails into the bed.

"Always so wet for me," he murmured, and then said louder, "I'm going to take pity on you."

"Oh, really?" she said. She'd meant for the words to sound sarcastic but they came out breathy and eager instead.

"I'm going to give you what you want."

He slid his finger out of her pussy, and she gasped when she realized what he was doing. His wet finger brushed against the cleft of ass, and then dipped inside to toy at the puckered hole in between.

She gasped and said, "That is definitely not something I want."

"You say that," he said, pressing gently against the hole, "But you're still wet."

He pressed the fingers of his other hand to her crotch as proof, and Buffy moaned.

"I don't want this," she said, but all he did was laugh, disregarding her words. She couldn't blame him. There was no truth to her words. At this point, all she wanted was him to let her come. How he did that, she didn't care.

"Get on with it then," she said, voice resigned.

His hands slapped against her ass hard, and her whole body shook. She struggled to hold herself up as she fought the pain.

"Don't give me orders, Buffy," he said, warning. She wanted to tell him to go fuck himself, but she didn't, pressing into the hand still resting on her ass.

His hand slid back in between the cleft of her ass and pressed against her hole again. This time, he increased the pressure, pushing one finger in as far as it would go and then letting it rest inside her.

She moaned, closing her eyes against the feeling. It burned but not uncomfortably, and she would never tell him that he was the first one to do this. Never.

"You are so tight, baby," he said, "I don't think I'll be able to fuck you today."

"Fuck me? I'd kill you first," she said, ignoring the way her body grew wetter at the thought.

"You keep saying that, but I'm still here. Why is that, Buff?"

He stopped her from replying by sliding the finger inside of her out of her and then adding another. It was more uncomfortable this time, the stretching feeling, but he was touching places that she didn't even know could feel so good when touched.

Angelus started to slide the fingers in and out, slowly, too slowly. She pushed back against him, trying to make him speed up, but he just placed his other hand on her hip, holding her steady. He didn't change the pace, kept at it, until Buffy thought she might die from the feeling.

"Fuck, please, just, please," she begged.

He leaned over her back, pressing a kiss to her back, and then said, "Feel like you're being punished now, Buffy."

"Yes, you've won, just let me come please."

"No," he said again, and continued his thrusting motions.

She wanted so badly that she felt tears prickle at the side of her eyes, and her brain was too fried to realize the implications of that. When she felt one of the tears fall, she let out a cry, trying to hold the rest in.

"Buff," Angelus said, and she could almost mistake his tone for concerned. She rolled her eyes, the thought giving her the strength to hold back the rest of the tears.

"Fuck," she heard him say. He removed his fingers from her tight channel, and then there was the sound of a zipper being undone.

He pressed his cock against her, and for a moment, Buffy was certain he really might fuck her in the ass, but then she felt it press against her entrance and she was still so wet that the head slid in without Angelus moving at all.

"Please," she said again, and then his hands were holding her hips steady and he was fucking into her, hard and fast. _This is a good _pace, she thought and her body agreed, the wonderful feelings coursing through her body increasing with each thrust.

"Sure," he said, trying to sound composed, but his voice was husky, nearly as needy as Buffy's.

"I'm really close," she panted out. She stopped fighting the urge to close her eyes minutes ago, her eyes closed as the sensations of pleasure spread all over her.

"I can tell," he said, and then he leaned over her to press another kiss to her back. She groaned at the hard touch of his lips, and pushed against him, meeting his thrusts as they came. Her hands and arms were incredibly sore, but she was so close ─ all she had to do was hold out for a little while longer. Just a little while.

"Please," she begged him again. She felt a hand inch up her thigh and then it moved, pressing against her swollen clit. She was hyper-sensitive, too overloaded, so the touch was enough to set her off, and she came with a cry. During her orgasmic high, she had a thought to Willow and Faith.

_He probably has them cordoned off somewhere so we can be all alone._

The thought was enough to bring her back down, and her arms shook. She nearly collapsed against the bed, but Angelus' arm slid around her waist, helping her to hold herself up even as he continued his thrusts.

She was too sensitive for this, and she could feel another orgasm building up inside her.

"Don't ─" she said, and she wasn't sure what she was telling him not to do.

"You gonna come for me again, baby," he said, and he was panting nearly as hard as she was.

"Yes, please."

His fingers stroked over her clit again, and she tightened around him, coming again. This time he followed quickly after, pumping into her.

He pulled out of her, and her first thought was to a shower, the second to the continuing pain in her ass, subdued but not gone.

He stood up, and took off the rest of his clothes before coming around and unlocking the cuffs around her wrists. She collapsed against the bed, just wanting to sleep, but he lifted her up off the bed and carried her to the shower.

"You need to not drown, Buff," he said, "I didn't bring any cleanup crews with me, and I'm really not in the mood for watching you die."

"Mmmm," she said, too exhausted to say more than that. She was sitting on the toilet, and she didn't realize how she'd gotten there. She really needed to pee though, and she did, not caring that Angelus was standing right next to her, messing with the shower.

"Nice room you chose Buffy," he said, "Great shower."

"I could care less what the shower is like," she said, yawning widely.

"Of course," he said, and he flushed the toilet for her and lifted her off the seat depositing her in the shower.

Her legs were so tired that it was a good thing that he followed right after her because she was close to falling.

"So difficult," she heard Angelus murmur, but it was like he was talking to a different person. She closed her eyes and let him wash her, only moving when pressed.

The relaxing nature of the shower was enough to give her the energy to dry herself and walk to the bed on her own. She pulled the sheet off the bed, and then snuggled in under the dry covers.

Angelus joined her a moment later, collapsing on the bed beside her. They laid in silence for a long moment.

"You let me come," she said wondrously as she came to the realization. He'd let her come even after he'd threatened her and left him aching in that hotel room. She twisted her head to eye him curiously.

"I'm nicer than you," he said by way of explanation. He pressed his head into her neck, and wrapped an arm around Buffy's chest, curling into her, and she turned her head back, staring at the cracked deck door.

_Not much of a punishment,_ she wanted to say, but what came out instead was a reluctant, "Thank you."

"Gee, what brought on this turn of events? You _thanking me_? I like this new Buffy. So much sweeter," he said into her hair, and she wanted to punch him in his smug face. If she wasn't so tired, she would.

"Shouldn't you be leaving now?" she said, shifting underneath the arm wrapped around her chest. He was heavy, but the weariness was too great and she couldn't lift his arm off her. Besides, although she wasn't willing to admit it, she liked the feeling.

"Only if you beg me, Buff," he said, sounding sleepy.

She didn't.

* * *

"Abrams," she said when she entered the living room of her apartment in New York. When she noticed that the hairpin she'd slid at the edge of the door had moved, she expected Angelus. She hadn't expected Parker Abrams at all.

Her heartbeat sped up a little. She's not prepared for a fight at all, and the last time they parted ─ well, there was a reason Buffy hadn't killed him yet. He was good. Not as good as her, but killing him was going to be a challenge.

Especially when she only had one weapon on her, her pistol, and Buffy's aim is good, but it's not that good.

"Buffy, nice place you got here," he said, whistling as he did a survey of the living room.

"Thanks," she said. She opened her purse, not caring if he noticed.

"Now, Buffy, do you really want to this like that? How about we do this hand to hand, no weapons."

She inclined her head at him, said, "Why not? Guns out, Abrams."

She indicated the one in his back pocket and the one taped to his back.

"You still know me so well," he said, pulling out not two but three pistols and a handgun. _Well, that's new_.

"Learned a couple of new tricks though, but you've probably already noticed."

He left his guns on the coffee table, and she placed her bag on the edge of the couch, within diving distance.

He stepped towards her until he was within hitting distance. The punch was completely expected. In fact Buffy let it happen, but it still threw her head back. She felt the blood trickle down her chin and she licked at the cut as she and Abrams continued to stare at each other.

"I told you it wasn't over."

She grinned at him, and said, "Finally coming through on your threat then? Let's go then. I promise not to be gentle."


	7. December 15: Parker Abrams

**title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**chapter title: **December 15: Parker Abrams

**author: **sentbyfools

**chapter summary: **

**a/n: **This is a rather short chapter because somehow this fic has plot now? No smut this chapter, and none the next. I have about 3 more chapters planned out for this fic and then a sequel. Updates might not be as frequent as they should be because of both writer's block and the fact that I'm working on 6 other very long fics at the moment, but I shall try to update sometime this year.

**story notes: **same note as before - the tense might be iffy in some places as I'm used to writing in the present tense now. If you notice any errors, please point them out.

**thank you to forevergal, crzy4theviking, Blonde-Existentialist, Brandi Rochon, Abigael Ryan, xan-merrick, annekebb4ever, and ba2006 for the reviews.**

* * *

Buffy didn't often regret guys. Usually, it was the other way around. She regretted Parker though. Buffy didn't make mistakes either, but if she did she would count Parker Abrams as one of them and not killing him as another.

It wasn't that she hadn't tried. She certainly had. He had made it quite difficult for her though, so she gave up and decided to put it off until later. Killing him wasn't an urgency at the time

Now it was though.

Annoyed, she punched him, her fist connecting with the hard bone of his jaw. It hurt, but she didn't get to be where she was by giving in to a little hurt. She shook it off just like she shook off his first punch.

Buffy swerved to the side to avoid the next punch he sent flying in her direction. It was a sloppy move. He had projected the attack, making it obvious to Buffy where he was aiming, and the ease with which she avoided it made Buffy suspicious. He was skilled; his fist should have at least connected with something on her.

She did not spend much time dwelling on it however. She sent a knee up into his thigh and knocked him off balance. She used the momentary advantage to push an elbow up into his nose. It broke beneath the blow, blood flowing freely over Buffy's sleeve and Parker's face.

"Bitch," he said, voice slightly muffled from the blood, and that is when Buffy noticed his knife.

She backed away a second too late. It slid across her belly, cutting through her top and into the delicate skin beneath. She hissed her pain and cursed him under her breath. Her resolve to end the fight quickly deepened.

"You're a cheater and a liar, Parker. As always," she said.

He twirled the knife between his fingers dangerously as he wiped the blood from his broken nose on his sleeve. The curved weapon was unique. It had a beautifully inscribed gold filigree handle, and the blade was lined with the same inscriptions. It looked specially made: just for Buffy probably.

_He always did know how to make me feel special_, she thought with sarcasm.

"Are you still upset over that?" he said with a chuckle. "Didn't you say no hard feelings?"

"Right before I drove a knife through you if you recall," Buffy spat. She gave him a grin to match his own. The cut on her stomach was deep and stinging. Buffy ignored the pain. She couldn't afford to give it or the cut on her lip any attention until Parker was down for good.

Parker chuckled again and with the hand not holding the knife, he lifted his shirt, exposing the skin beneath. There was a healed over scar on his chest, a slice of ugly flesh on the otherwise perfect expanse of skin.

"Oh, I recall perfectly." His grin turned ugly then. "I'm going to kill you, Buffy, but first I'm going to mar that pretty flesh as well as you marred mine."

"Good luck with that," Buffy said with not quite false bravado. She already would not come out of the encounter unscathed. Coming out of the encounter though, she was certain of. He wasn't going to kill her, although he would certainly try.

"I'm sure you truly mean that," he said. He adjusted his grip on the knife, preparing for an attack. "You always had a death wish. Don't worry, I'm going to grant it."

"Can we skip the threats and the psychoanalysis and get back down to business? I had plans, you know," she continued when he didn't move.

He attacked then, slicing the knife at her face. She twisted to the side and smacked her arm into his side as she did so. Her elbow connected, but not hard enough to cause much damage. She would have gone for her gun, but he blocked her path to both hers and his. The arcs of his blade were wide enough to avoid, but not wide enough to move between. He was doing it purposely, playing with her, and it made her seethe.

She was the only one in that room allowed to play those games.

Instead of moving closer to him to try and grab the knife out of his hands, she kicked at the small wooden side table before her, tossing it in his direction. It was the distraction she needed to move toward his guns.

She picked it up and aimed it at his head as he gathered himself together again. She pulled the trigger only to come up empty. She grabbed the other two guns, but the same thing happened. Empty barrels.

Parker was laughing at her, and just when Buffy was about to go at him again, he said, "I knew you'd go for them at some point. I wanted to see the look on your face when you realized they were empty."

"And what if I had just shot at you when I came in, what would you have done then?" Buffy said between gritted teeth.

He scoffed. "I knew you wouldn't. Buffy, I _know_ you. You hate handling guns. If anything, you would've tried to knife me. It was obvious that you didn't have any on you the minute you saw me and didn't attack, so I wasn't worried. I knew you would take my offer. You're very predictable, Buffy, you and all the girls I've been with."

"My gun barrel isn't empty," she said, the threat clear in her words.

"I know," he said. She heard the cock of the weapon before she saw the gun and then the pain seared through her. She fell to her knees, holding her abdomen. The bullet had torn through muscle and bone, exiting behind her. It hurt so much that her vision went black for a moment.

Her only thought: _5 more bullets._

She felt real fear for the first time since the fight began.

"You're not looking so good, Buffy," he said, walking towards her. "It looks like that hurt."

"I'm going to put you out of your misery now," he said, "Looking at you like this is just depressing."

She looked up from where she was staring at the black of his shoes to where he was pointing the gun at her head.

She held back the gasp of both pain and fear that threatened to come out of her mouth. This was the moment that someone would come to save her if she were living in a movie, but she wasn't so she tried to pull herself together. The couch was pressed up against her back. She had a knife there. If she could get to it...

The gun cocked, and Buffy bit her lip as she reached under the couch as fast as she could. The bullet whizzed past her head. The second one after that grazed her shoulder, sending new pain rolling through her. She pulled out the knife though as the third bullet buried itself into its cushions.

"Stop moving," he cursed, and then the knife cut into her cheek. He had obviously given up on using the gun.

His mistake.

She looked into his eyes, and said, "Goodbye, Parker," and threw her knife in a perfectly aimed arc with all the power she had left in her. It buried itself on target, right in the middle of Parker's forehead. The gun and knife fell out of his now slack hands, falling onto the hardwood floor. Buffy's hands moved to her bleeding abdomen. She tried to stifle the blood flow as Parker's dead body fell to the floor beside her.

She was bleeding profusely, too much for her hands to stop. She was fading out of consciousness already and she tried to stand, tried to do anything but lay there and die, but ─

She passed out.

* * *

In and out of consciousness, all Buffy could remember was Xander's worried expression, the scent of ammonia and rubbing alcohol, and the feeling of numbness, before she finally truly awoke in a hospital bed.

"Am I fit enough to walk?" she snapped at Faith who was standing by her side at the edge of the bed. Buffy's throat was dry, and she fumbled at the table beside her until her hand slid against the pitcher of water. She didn't bother with the cup, just took a long drink straight from the pitcher.

"Probably," Faith said, "Doesn't mean you should."

"I hate hospitals," Buffy said simply.

Faith nodded. "I know. Come on, I'll give you a helping hand."

"I'm surprised your boyfriend didn't come to save you," Faith said as she helped Buffy to stand. Buffy's legs felt wobbly and half-asleep, but she didn't fall over. It was a good sign.

"How did you guys know?" Buffy said, ignoring the not subtle reference to Angelus. She didn't want to think about him just yet. She really didn't want to think of anything at the moment.

"Someone had been researching you and it pinged on Willow's 'Buffy radar'. It didn't take us long to backtrack it to Abrams, but by then, well, you were half dead."

"It's lucky that I have such great friends," Buffy mumbled as she slid into a pair of sweatpants with only slight difficulty. Her abdomen was starting to ache, but she had enough pain meds at her apartment to cover that. She just had to make it there, and after that...

"I'm taking a break," Buffy said.

Faith looked her over with a critical eye. Finally, she said, "I understand. Let's get you out of here."

"Thanks," Buffy said, truly meaning it.


	8. December 18: Angelus

**Title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**Chapter Title: **December 18: Angelus

**Author: **sentbyfools

**Chapter Summary: **Angelus finds the Initiative.

**A/N: **Another rather short chapter, but the next chapter which is the final one for this fic will be much longer. And smut.

**Thank you to Brandi Rochon and Abigael Ryan for the reviews!**

* * *

**December 14**

It took awhile but Angelus finally found it, the Initiative. He had more connections besides Merl but none that were such great founts of information. Angelus wasn't one for missing people, but he missed Merl. Finding the Initiative would've been done weeks ago if he had him. There was no use in dwelling on it though, and Angelus didn't like to dwell anyway. Brooding wasn't really his thing.

He stood outside the fairly nondescript building, a white concrete structure with only a basic embellishment on the front indicating its ownership ─ _Nabitt Tech_. The name had surprised him, but not that much. Nabitt was heavy on the assassinations; human experimentation wasn't that much of a stretch.

He stepped down the gravel covered driveway and to the entrance, whistling a jaunty tune as he did so. He opened the glass doors and entered into a brightly lit building. Angelus scanned the room. The atrium was empty save for a guard at the desk, an air vent, and two elevators leading to where he wasn't certain. He'd gotten the location of the building, but he'd been unable to get blueprints. He hadn't let it worry him too much however. He'd taken Gwen, he could take whoever or whatever else they threw at him.

Angelus did expect more security than the simple guard at the desk. For a moment, he thought that maybe he had the wrong building and that his sources had been wrong. He only thought it for a moment though because a second later the guard stood up from his desk. He held a pistol in his hands which were shaking. Fucking amateur.

"I know who you are," the guard said, his voice shaking just as badly as he hands.

"And I don't give a damn who you are. Put down the gun now, and I promise to make your death quick and clean."

The guard shook his head, and Angelus sighed dramatically. "Bad choice."

The gun went off. Angelus avoided the shot easily. The guard was too terrified and too untrained to get off a good shot. That piqued Angelus' suspicions. The kill shouldn't be this easy, not for an organization mutating assassins. He frowned as he approached the guard. The man was still shooting, bullets pinging as they hit and buried themselves in the walls. The man was sweating profusely. Angelus rolled his eyes. He'd gotten too used to people as difficult as his Buffy; quarry like this was just tiresome.

He reached the man and walked behind the desk to stand face to face with him.

"Please don't kill me," the guard cried out. By the cracked sound of his voice, Angelus stared at him, surprised the man managed not to wet his pants.

"If you know me at all, then you know begging just makes me want to kill you more."

With one well placed kick, Angelus snapped the man's neck, the force of the blow sending his victim's head reeling backwards. It was a pity Buffy wasn't there to see it. She would be sure to appreciate his mastery of the technique. Like him, she had an eye for beauty.

He started walking towards the elevators then. They pinged when he was a couple of feet away from then. Angelus waited patiently for whoever was inside them.

The doors opened to reveal seven men in grey military gear. They filed out in a well-trained manner, headed by a single man in black gear. Strapped to their waists were pistols and slung over each of their shoulders was an automatic. They looked like an actual challenge, and Angelus was intrigued.

"Who wants to go first?" Angelus asked at his most cocky, grinning at them like a cat.

The men remained silent, cool and composed, as they watched him. _Good_, Angelus thought. Killing one pansy was enough for one day. He waited for the men to approach him. Trying to take them all at once would make things too difficult. Angelus was good, and he wasn't stupid. He would let them come to him.

The men could just shoot him, but he knew as soon as they exited the elevator that they wouldn't. Well, at least he thought they wouldn't until they all unstrapped their automatics and aimed them at him.

"Boring," he said. He put his hands in the air in an sign of surrender. If they were going to kill him, he decided, they would have done it already. Obviously, the guns were just to keep him in check. They wanted him for something, and wasn't that why Angelus was there in the first place, to find out what that something else was?

He frowned when he heard a gun cock. A pointless gesture, automatics didn't need to be cocked. Angelus eyes moved from where he was scanning the faceless men who had circled around him, penning him in, back to the leader. He was outfitted in a gun quite different from the others.

Angelus found out why moments later when he was winged in the side. He looked down to see the dart fall to the ground before him. The dart's poison didn't take long to start taking effect. He collapses on one knee, the poison from the dart weakening his muscles.

The leader took slow steps towards him, a smart move. Angelus pulled out the knife from where it was strapped to his belt and aimed it at the man. The poison too some of the force from the blow, but Angelus' aim wasn't as affected. The knife sliced into the man's left thigh and skidded across the floor, echoing in all the but silent room. The man grasped his leg where the blade had cut through fabric and protective gear to tear through the skin beneath.

"Fuck you," the face mask muffling his words. He kicked Angelus with his uninjured leg, but Angelus barely felt it. His whole body was going numb.

The leader lifted his mask, and just as Angelus' vision began to blur, he recognized the man through his haze. _Riley Finn_, Maggie Walsh's protégée. And the plot thickens, is what Angelus would say if he had any energy to. Throwing the knife had taken everything out of him. Riley signaled his men and when they picked Angelus up from the floor and divested him of the weapons they could find with a cursory search, he didn't protest; he couldn't.

Angelus didn't know where they were leading him, but he would find out soon enough. The elevator doors opened and they stepped inside.

* * *

**December 25**

Angelus stepped out of the elevator without a glance behind him to the carnage of torn throats and limbs. There was still shooting going on downstairs, and the infrequency of the sound told him he would soon be joined by people he wasn't too keen on meeting.

His eyes hurt in the too bright room, and he shielded them with the palm of his hand. That wouldn't help at all for leaving the building. The sun was high in the sky.

He thought a moment about staying until sunset, but then he looked behind him and saw the bloody mess he'd made and changed his mind. He'd fed a lot today, but it wasn't enough.

He needed to hunt as soon as possible, and he couldn't afford to wait until sunset. Angelus sighed and exited the building. He ran over to the car with his head down. He used a pick he'd left on the ground by his car to jimmy open the lock. Nothing seemed to have changed inside of it, but Angelus did a quick look through anyway, checking for bombs and bugs and making sure the engine hadn't been messed with. When he had the all clear, he got comfortable in his seat and started the car.

As he peeled away down the gravel driveway, he watched as a blood covered woman exited the facility. She looked at him a moment before running off in the opposite direction, moving at a supernatural speed.

Angelus looked down at himself. He was covered in just as much blood as her and looking in the rearview mirror, he realized his face was covered in blood. He wiped a hand across it, smearing blood on his hand which he licked. _Delicious._

He really needed to feed and fast. And then find Buffy.

* * *

**December 27**

A knock sounds at her door and Buffy tenses. It takes a moment for her to relax. She picked up the gun from where it was lying on the couch beside her and adjusted the knife on her belt for quick access.

"Who is it?" she called out.

"Buff, open the door."

It was Angelus' voice. _How had he found her so quickly?_

She considered not opening it, but he would probably break it down. She hadn't spent such a long time renovating this house to have Angelus destroy it. He probably would end up doing it anyway. He was destructive like that.

"Buffy," he said again, his voice a pathetic whine.

"Okay, okay, just stop," Buffy said unlatching the many locks she had on her door.

"What are you trying to make this a fortress?" Angelus asked when she finally opened the door.

"I -" she started to say and closes her mouth. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. Staying outside like this was already starting to get to her. "Would you like to come in?"

"I would love to, lover."

Buffy stepped to the side, and let him inside.


	9. December 27

**title: **You're No Mr. Smith

**chapter title: **December 27

**author: **sentbyfools

**chapter summary: **The end is more of a beginning than anything.

**a/n: **This is the final chapter. Thanks for sticking with me for so long (3 years is a long time, isn't it?). The sequel is in the works but I probably won't start posting for a little while as I need to focus on a couple of my other unfinished stories. Feel free to leave any questions on this chapter in the reviews, and I'll make sure they get answered in the sequel.

**Thank you to everyone who has followed this fic for the past three years and to everyone who's ever read or reviewed. **

* * *

**Dec. 27**

He grinned at her brightly. He was really pale, she noticed, but she stopped the train of thought before it started. She didn't need to think of Angelus in that light. Post Parker, she had sworn off Angelus. Being around him was making her off her game, and she didn't need that. Not in this business. She could always stop; she was on a break after all, but she loved her job. Stopping altogether didn't sit well with her.

"Done over-thinking this?" Angelus asked from behind her. She could hear the grin in his voice.

'I wasn't thinking about you,' was her snap reaction. She held her tongue though. She wasn't in the mood to start that with him. Having him there was already giving her a headache.

The anxiety she tried to ignore.

"Nice place," he said, whistling as he circled the room with his gaze.

"Thank you. Now don't bother me. I have things to do," she replied as if he might listen. Angelus didn't react well to orders though so she wasn't surprised when he sidled up beside her and wrapped a heavy arm around her shoulders.

"I missed you, Buffy. Did you miss me?" he murmured into her neck as he started to kiss along it. She moaned softly, trying not to get lost in the sensation of his cool lips against her sensitive skin. It wasn't really working.

"Not really," she replied. She blanched at how needy and breathless she sounded and that gave her the strength she needed to push him away. She wasn't ready for this, for him. Why had he come? _Why had he come?_

Frustrated at him and herself, she turned away from him to avoid meeting his questioning gaze. She could feel him behind her even though they weren't touching; his presence was suffocating.

"What happened to you?" he asked. His tone was quiet, controlled. She didn't turn around, but it did give her pause, both the tone and the question.

"You first," she shot back at him. She didn't need him to psychoanalyze her. She had been doing that enough for the past two weeks.

"I asked you first though," he pointed out.

"Oh, yes, but I care more about you than what happened to me," she said, rolling her eyes along with the sarcastic response.

He chuckled. "How selfless of you."

"Not really," Buffy said. It was the truth. The longer she could avoid talking about her, the better.

There was a long silence, and finally something in Buffy gave, and she turned around. He was studying her carefully, but not in his usual manner. His gaze wasn't objectifying her. She wasn't sure she liked this new turn of events.

"Why do you care?" she asked, voice strained.

"You're the best," he said, a non-sequitur. He took a step towards her. He made his approach clear, careful in his movements. Like she was a frightened animal, backed into a corner. Maybe she was.

"I'm better than most."

Her voice was so small that she was surprised it came from her. She hadn't sounded so vulnerable in years, longer than she could even remember. _Never show your enemy your weakness_. Somehow along the way, she had stopped considering Angelus the enemy.

Angelus was centimeters away from her. She had to incline her head to look him in the eyes as she said," That's the thing. I don't think I am."

She wasn't sure who ever said the truth will set you free. It just made her feel more trapped beneath the weight of her uncertainty.

Angelus frowned at her and took her face in his hands, forcing her to keep their eye contact. "Fuck Parker Abrams. He's dead and you're not. You're better than this, lover."

There were a billion questions ─ how did you know, where were you, why did you even ask, what are we even doing ─ but Buffy ignored them all in favour of closing the distance and kissing Angelus. Whatever else he was, he made her feel good. Buffy needed to feel good in that moment. She was tired of feeling awful. If he thought she was the best, then she was. That she had even let Parker make her question that baffled her then, but she refused to berate herself. She much preferred to not regret and focus on kissing Angelus instead.

She bit at his lower lip gently, and then released it as she slid her tongue into his mouth. They dueled for long moments until finally Buffy had to pull away to breathe. She panted against his lips, and he did the same.

"Don't stop kissing me," Buffy said when she had caught her breath. She caught his gaze in hers.

"Bossy," Angelus chided. His eyes grew dark and almost golden for a moment, but it disappeared as quickly as it came. His expression lightened and his lips fell into a grin. "But I'm happy to oblige."

He captured her lips in his own and Buffy gave in to the significantly rougher kiss. He bit her deeply and sucked on the open wound. It stung, but Buffy regained control quickly and returned the bite, blood flowing freely from both their wounds. He groaned against her lips and then continued his rough assault of her mouth. Her lips felt bruised as he pressed against them.

While his tongue invaded her mouth, his hands were moving up her sides and tugging her shirt out of her jeans. She let him, wanting to feel his talented hands against her skin. She began backing him up towards the front bedroom. Their heated touches were only leading towards one thing; Buffy much preferred fucking in a bed than on her floor although she wouldn't say no to the kitchen table.

He pulled away from her and stopped her in her steps. Pressing his forehead against her sweaty one, he said as he slipped his hands beneath her shirt, "Not going to put up a fight this time?"

"I'm on a break," she said by way of explanation. Plus, she really wasn't in the mood for fighting him. She was too horny for that. Beating the crap out of him would take longer than she had the patience for.

He chuckled and began stroking his hands against her stomach. His hands were cold. Buffy didn't mind though. Her skin was hot enough that they warmed quickly.

"Continue this in the bedroom," she said. She removed herself from his grasp and walked into her room. She began unbuttoning her shirt as she did so, sure that he would follow.

She was right. By the time she finished unbuttoning her shirt, Angelus was behind her and she had reached the bed. He slid her shirt off her shoulders slowly and pressed his hips against her ass. His erection pressed against her and the feeling of his arousal turned her on more. She pushed back against him, eliciting another groan from him and then reached behind her and between their bodies to unsnap her bra.

She twisted until she was facing him.

"Please," she said, and even though she didn't say anything else, he knew exactly what she wanted.

"God, your tits are beautiful," he said as he pressed her down on the bed until she was leaning back on her elbows and he was pressed in between her legs, his covered erection digging into the crotch of her jeans.

"Take off your shirt," she said. "I want to touch you."

"Of course," he said, and pulled the thin t-shirt up and over his head.

"You're being unusually compliant," she said, giving him a suspicious look.

"I'm really not interested in fighting today. Are you? Besides, if I wanted to kick your ass, I wouldn't wait until you were so defenseless. I like you on your A game; it makes the win that much sweeter."

"Defenseless?" she said, her tone challenging. With one swift moment, she switched their positions so that he was laying on his back across the bed and she was straddling him. "I am in no way defenseless. You on the other hand..."

For a moment, she did consider fighting him, the critique in his words cutting too close to home. The knife strapped to her ankle was within easy reach as were the two beneath her pillow; carving into his skin would be all too easy. When he thrust his hips against hers though, she pushed that thought aside. She wanted this more than she craved the heat of battle.

Leaning down she kissed his chest. She sucked on the skin until his chest was littered with red hickeys. She dug her nails into his sides, leaving bloody swaths on the skin. He didn't seem to mind though. It wasn't long before he lifted her forward so that she was straddling his chest instead of his hips. He began to undo the belt of her jeans, and Buffy was all too happy to help him.

She shimmied out of them, removed the knife from her ankle, and then returned to her position in his lap. She grinded against him and enjoyed the way he watched her as she did so.

"You're gorgeous, Buffy," he said, reaching up to run his fingers through her hair. It was probably a mess; she hadn't bothered to brush it all that day. She didn't think she would have company out here with how remote her location was. Well, at least not so soon. She was prepared for them, of course. If she wanted to survive, Buffy needed to be. Buffy wanted more than survival though; she wanted to _live_, so she kept her weapons well stocked, her body well toned, and her ears and eyes open to any and all threats.

"I know," she quipped back at him, returning her mind to the current situation. Her mind went, unbidden, to the thought of the situation in her pants ─ she blamed Xander ─ and she started to giggle uncontrollably. She touched a hand to Angelus' chest to steady herself as the laughter overtook her.

"What are you laughing at?" Angelus asked, but Buffy's laughter had already stopped. Underneath her hand there was no movement, no heart beating in his chest. She leaned down, touching her ear to his chest instead. A minute passed. He was breathing, she could see that clearly, but there was no reaction within him.

"Your heart isn't beating," Buffy said, her ear still pressed to his chest. "Why isn't your heart beating?"

Buffy has never been on the verge of hysteria at any point in her life, but she was coming close to feeling it now. Hearts are supposed to beat; there's no if, ands, or buts about it. _Hearts are supposed to beat_.

"About that..."

Buffy tore herself away from him then, arousal dissipating into nothing. She sat beside him on the bed, but she wasn't sure that was a good idea.

"What the hell is going on here?" she asked.

"Well, remember Gwen?" he said, turning to look at her.

She met his gaze with barely contained anger. "How could I forget Electric Hands? The bitch tried to fry me."

"Well, I did my research, found out she was working for the Initiative," he continued.

"That's what you were up to when we were in Antigua. Gathering information on the Initiative," Buffy said.

"Yeah, which turned out to be a bust when they killed my best source. Fuckers," he said bitterly.

"Sorry," she said, truly apologetic. She knew how hard it was to find a good source. "But you found them anyway, obviously."

"Yeah, and by that time, they'd moved on from psycho mutants who can manipulate electricity and onto bigger and better things."

He paused and cracked his neck before he continued, "They were making vampires."

"Vampires," Buffy repeated as if that would lead to a new understanding of the situation.

"Vampires," Angelus echoed with a tight smile.

Buffy was starting to grow cold. She focused on that. She stood up and walked over to her armoire. She could feel Angelus' eyes on her and it made her feel like prey. It was nothing unusual, so she ignored it. Buffy pulled out a t-shirt large enough to cover her down to her thighs and threw it over her head.

When she was feeling a little more comfortable, she decided it was time to address the whole vampire thing. Keeping a safe distance away from Angelus and a close distance to her weapon's collection, she sat down in the chair next to the closet instead of beside him on the bed.

He gave her a disappointed look, but when she said, "Tell me everything," he did.

* * *

Jealousy and anger didn't really cover how Buffy felt about the whole Darla and Drusilla issue, and the fact that she felt those emotions at all was worrisome. Did she _like_ Angelus? That wouldn't do at all. She gave him a disparaging look, and then she pushed her feelings away in favour of the bigger picture: the whole vampire assassins intent on killing everyone in their path.

"So, what are you going to do about them?" she asked curiously. On the one hand, she really wanted to know his plans, on the other, she wanted to know whether it was worth keeping him alive.

"I'm going to kill them," he said with a wave of his hand like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "There's only room for one psychotic vampire assassin."

Buffy grinned at him, feeling oddly elated by his vow to kill his exes turned vampires. "I'm liking this newfound honesty."

"Newfound? Lover, when have I ever been dishonest?"

She didn't even acknowledge his question with a look. "How are you going to do that? And what about Nabitt?"

He shrugged. "I'll figure it out when it comes to that. And he's a dead man just as soon as I figure out where he is. For now, I'm exhausted. Care to join me in bed?"

She stared at him a moment, considering. He was dead, or well, to be more correct he was undead. He should be rotting in the ground right now, but instead Angelus was walking and talking and acting like his usual self except for the whole not breathing thing. Killing him would be the simplest thing to do in this situation, but Buffy reveled in the not simple.

She stood up from the chair and slowly walked towards where he was lounging on the bed. Carefully, she straddled him.

"Are you too tired for this?" she said. "That's disappointing."

His hands ran up her sides and slid the shirt up and over her head quickly. "I'm never too tired to fuck, Buffy. What kind of man do you take me for?"

"A vampire."

He laughed as he shifted their positions so that he was on top, kneeling between her legs, and she was lying beneath him. "That's true. But I'm pretty sure that's all vampires do. Fuck."

"And kill," Buffy pointed out as he began to remove his pants. She pushed her fingers under the waistband of her panties and began to finger herself. Heat began to pool inside her, and she moaned softly, closing her eyes as the waves of pleasure began to grow inside of her.

"Also, true. How is that any different from me normally?" Angelus replied. When she opened her eyes again, he was totally nude.

"I never said it was different," she said, "But the whole blood drinking thing is new, I hope."

He grasped her by the forearm and pulled her hand away from herself. She moaned at the loss of touch and pouted at him.

She was about to reprimand him when he responded, "And if I said it wasn't."

Reprimand forgotten, she said, "Well, that takes kinky to a whole new level."

"Wanna see my fangs?" he asked.

She laughed. "Was that supposed to be a come on?"

He pressed against her, grinding his length against the wetness layer of fabric separating them. "Not really."

She inclined her head at him and pressed her wet fingers to his cheek. Leaning on one arm above her, he pulled her hand away from his cheek and slid them into his mouth. He sucked on each wet finger. The action turned Buffy on all the more.

With a husky tone, Buffy said, "Show me."

It happened in a flash. One moment, Angelus looked like Angelus, the next moment his face was mask of bumpy skin, eyes golden, and fangs digging into the skin of Buffy's fingers.

She loved it.

She pulled her hand from his mouth, scraping her finger deliberately against his fangs. It stung, but it had the effect she wanted. Before she could pull her hand to herself, he had grabbed it up again. Buffy moaned as he sucked on the open wound.

When he pulled away from her, he said, "You like that, don't you?"

"Mmhmm," she said, nodding. She was biting on her lower lip, worrying it with her teeth. She was so close to coming. She wondered if he could tell.

"Kinky girl," he murmured.

"Mmhmm," Buffy said again in confirmation.

"Want me to fuck you?" he asked her. He pushed his cock against the fabric of her panties, and she groaned, wanting to feel him inside her.

"Yes," she said, releasing her lip. "Gods yes."

He tore the panties from her and before she could comment on the destruction of yet another piece of her clothing by him, he was inside her. All thought left her except for the feeling of his cock thrusting in her.

She'd forgotten how good it felt having him inside of her. He was the only guy that had ever made her feel so full, so complete and it was amazing. She pushed her hips up to meet his thrusts, pushing him even deeper inside of her. At this rate, she wasn't going to last at all, and she didn't mind it. She just wanted to come again and again.

"This is so good," she said.

"Yes, it most definitely is," Angelus replied, pushing his hips into hers harder. He shifted her legs so that her knees were pushed up towards her chest. When he thrust again, it was deeper than before. Buffy moaned at the extra contact. She was going to be sore after this, but for now she was going to enjoy the feeling.

"This is better, isn't it?" Angelus' tone was demanding.

"If I said no?" she asked.

He stopped moving so suddenly that Buffy felt whiplash. "Well I could always leave." He started to pull away from her, but Buffy grabbed him by the arm.

"Don't be a dick. I was just playing with you," she replied, feeling kind of desperate and hating it, but fuck, she needed to come.

"I want to hear you say it," he said. He grinned at her as he continued, "My ego demands it."

"Your ego is stupid," Buffy said. She wrapped her hands around his neck so that he was forced downward. When he was within kissing distance, she kissed him softly and said against his lips, "Much better."

He moved out of her grasp then and resumed fucking her. She wasn't lying when she said it was much better. She was getting closer and closer to her orgasm. Angelus was holding one of her hips to keep her steady as his movements became more violent.

"Fuck," she said, "Please."

His teeth were in her neck before she could react. She moaned as he began to draw blood from her, and exploded as she came. His thrusts slowed as he sucked on the punctured skin, biting her harder as he followed her into orgasm. When Buffy began to feel a little dizzy, she pushed against him lightly with her arm.

He released her, and pulled away to reveal a blood covered vampiric face. When he leaned back down, Buffy thought he was going to bite her again, but he simply licked along her bite wound. Her skin was so sensitive that she felt herself coming yet again with him still inside of her. When her second orgasm faded away, he pulled out of her.

She closed her legs slowly, feeling weak, and said dazedly, "You're covered in my blood."

"Mmhmm," he said, licking his lips. "You taste delicious, Buff."

"Well, I'm _so very_ happy to be such a good meal," she said. She wasn't really angry, but she didn't like having things forced upon her without her permission. It felt like a loss of control and Buffy was almost as controlling as Angelus.

"Sorry about that, couldn't help myself. Do you know how you smell when you're in the heat of orgasm?" he said, shifting his face back to normal as he spoke. He looked handsome covered in her blood, an image of darkness. It was stunning.

"How do I smell?" she asked with curiosity. Feeling was coming back to her but she still felt a little dizzy.

"Like everything I've ever wanted," he replied.

The words made Buffy feel weird as does the matter of fact way he said them. It made her feel good in a way that she didn't quite understand.

_Weird._

"I think you took too much blood. I feel really tired."

"I think that was the sex, lover," he said smiling at her. He was still kneeling between her legs, and he took that moment to lie down beside her.

"That might be it too," she agreed. She turned into him, resting her head on his chest. He wrapped his arm over her shoulder, pulling her closer.

"I'm sleepy," she said.

"Go to sleep," he replied, and she acquiesced, falling asleep in his warm embrace.

They slept for hours and Buffy awoke to the feeling of another body pressed against her. She calmed the near freak out she had quickly, running through the events of yesterday. She touched her hand to the bite mark on her neck. The skin was raised and bumpy and she remembered with clarity the feeling of Angelus' teeth piercing her skin.

Buffy slid out from underneath the sheets and threw her legs over the side of the bed. Reaching into her bedside table, she pulled out the vial of holy water there. She also pulled out one of her many knives. Dousing the knife in the holy water, she returned to the bed.

She stared at Angelus for long moments before she moved closer to him. Buffy couldn't tell if he was awake or asleep now that the tell-tale rise and fall of his chest was gone. She traced the knife gently around the curves of face, careful not to cut him.

After a minute had passed of this, Angelus said without opening his eyes, "You can take the knife away, you know. I promise not to eat you."

Now that he was awake, the rise and fall was back. Buffy wondered how long it would take for him to get used to not breathing or whether he had already and he was just mimicking the need to breathe to placate her.

"I know," she said, removing the knife from his face. "I just wanted to see if the legends were true."

Angelus opened his eyes then. He opened his mouth to say something and then seemed to change his mind. After a moment, he raised a brow at her and said, "The legends?"

"Allergy to holy water," Buffy said.

His mouth fell into a grin and he said, "You own holy water?"

"It was a whim," she replied almost defensively.

Angelus stared at her, a considering look on his face, and then said, "Come on then. Let's find out."

She scraped the knife across his skin lightly, not breaking it. When nothing happened, she stabbed it through his skin. She already knew that he had super healing, so it wouldn't really bother him. The pained look on his face was oddly satisfying though.

"You're enjoying my pain," he said.

"Just a little," she said, "A teeny, tiny bit."

He made a rumbling noise, almost a laugh. "Your disregard for my well being is endearing."

"I don't think holy water effects me," he continued, "Maybe you should try just pouring it on me."

"Good idea," she said and reached back into her bedside table for the vial. She poured it drop by drop on his skin. Nothing happened.

"So I guess crosses won't have any effect either," Buffy said. "Well that's good, right? You can still kill a priest."

"Or a nun or two," Angelus replied. There was a lazy grin on his face, and Buffy couldn't help but smile back.

"You're warm after you feed, right?" she asked. "It's the only thing that makes sense."

"My Buffy, always so smart."

She narrowed her eyes at him, slicing the knife into his skin just to watch it heal over. "That sounded like sarcasm."

"It wasn't," he said with a serious expression.

"Whatever," she said, hand-waving it away. "Anything else I should know about?"

"I haven't tested everything yet," he said.

A thought occurred to her. "Do you still go to the bathroom? Can you eat real food?"

He raised an eyebrow at her, an amused expression on his face. "I haven't needed to actually use the bathroom since the change. And I haven't tried eating anything besides people yet so -"

Buffy saw what he was getting at. "Perhaps we should try that out."

"You've already seen the kitchen. Unlike you, I need to go to the bathroom, and I'd like to shower so can you try making something? Can you even cook?"

"I have a lot of skills you don't know about, lover," he said. "I'll whip something up."

"Good, because I'm starving," she said. She tried to stand but Angelus grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back against him.

"Really? I'm hungry too," he said, the arousal in his voice unmistakable.

"Yeah, _no_. I really need to pee," she said and untangled herself from his embrace. He pouted at her, but she ignored him and disappeared into the bathroom.

When she finished showering and freshening up, she exited in just a t-shirt and panties. She planned on spending the day in bed, so dressing would just be a pointless endeavour.

She could smell something good cooking so she supposed that Angelus really did have a hidden cooking skill. She walked towards the kitchen, drying her hair with a towel as she did so.

"It's almost ready," Angelus said when she entered. He was standing before the stove, frying something. Buffy only really learned how to cook out of necessity so she made really simple meals. Whatever Angelus was cooking looked complicated and she couldn't figure out how he managed to do that from the few ingredients she had in her fridge.

"It smells good."

For a long time they stood there in silence. Buffy was a little weirded out by the domesticity of the moment. After months of just meeting up to fuck and fight, waking up in the afternoon to a meal made by Angelus was just not normal. Well, at least not their kind of normal.

"Are you eating?" she asked him.

He turned his head to look at her. "I'll try. My food is always delicious; I'd love to be able to eat it."

"Modesty suits you," she quipped.

He laughed and said, "Grab a plate. Food's done."

They ate in relative silence. Angelus had made something with the leftover chicken and eggs she had in the fridge. Angelus didn't have to be modest about his cooking skills; it was delicious.

By the time she was finished eating, she had decided they needed to address their situation.

"What are we doing here?" she asked him as she was putting her plate in the sink.

"I believe we were eating."

She turned to glare at him. "You know what I meant."

"I do. I just like winding you up," he replied with a smile. "What do you want to be doing?"

"I don't know. You're no Mr. Smith," Buffy said. She seemed to have finished there and Angelus sighed disappointedly but then she said, "But I sort of like you anyway. Besides, we make a great team."

"Do we now?" he said, but it wasn't really a question. He grabbed Buffy around the waist and pulled her towards him. Pressing his face into soft skin on her neck where he had bitten her, he murmured, "I sort of like you too. I think it's the sex."

"We have great sex," Buffy agreed, voice breathy as Angelus started to kiss and suck along the bite mark.

When he took a moment to pull away, he said, "Perhaps we should do that now?" It also wasn't a question as he was already sliding his hands under her t-shirt and pulling her panties to the side. He moved his fingers through the curly hairs of her sex and lower until his thumb was rubbing against her clit.

"Okay," she said, "Okay."

"That's what I like to hear," he replied as he stroked along her nether lips before pushing his way inside. She was already wet so the finger slid in easily.

"God, you are always so wet for me," he said. With his free hand he tore her panties off, giving him full access to her. "I really don't know why you bother putting these things back on. I'm going to keep ripping them off you until you learn."

"Oh, stop talking and put your mouth to good use," she said, tugging at him until he released her with a laugh. He kneeled down and continued thrusting into her with his finger, adding another one when she nudged him.

"Aren't you scared I could hurt you?" Angelus asked. "Your femoral artery is right here."

With the finger of his free hand he stroked along it. "I could tear into you right now, suck the blood right out of you."

"Try it and see if I don't stake your ass," Buffy said coldly despite their intimate position and the way her body felt like it was on fire with every thrust of his fingers.

"I love it when you talk dirty." Angelus grinned and then removed his fingers and, throwing one of her legs over his shoulder, replaced them with his mouth.

Buffy couldn't find the energy to respond to his quip because she was too occupied with trying not to fall to her knees. His tongue was probing her delicately, the touch so light that all it did was make her crave more. He was keeping her on the brink purposely, she knew, and she didn't like it. She just wanted to come.

"Angelus," she said, and grabbed him by the hair, pulling him away from her. When she looked down at him, his eyes were glowing dangerously. It didn't faze her.

"I'm really not in the mood for teasing," she said. "Like not at all."

"Okay," he said simply, and she released her grip on his hair. When he returned his mouth to her quim, this time he licked her almost hungrily, his tongue thrusting in and out of her and swiping along her clit in carefully calculated motions. Buffy's hands soon returned to his hair, using him for support.

"Fuck," she cursed, voice barely above a whisper, and then repeated it louder as her orgasm tore through her. Angelus continued to lick her throughout it until finally her grip on his hair loosened and he was able to pull away.

"You're lucky I didn't need to come up for breath, lover. You've got a grip like a vise," he said. He rubbed his head where she had pulled at his hair, and she giggled, amused by the mess her grasp caused.

"This is funny to you?" he said, coming to a stand.

"Definitely," she replied and leaned into to kiss him. She could taste herself on his lips. She licked at the inside of his mouth hungrily, not protesting when he lifted her up on the table. She wrapped her legs around him, pulling him closer and dug her fingers into his sides. His sweats came off quickly and soon his cock was rubbing against her clit. He was teasing her, and she hated it.

She stopped the kiss and licked her palm slowly. Angelus watched her entranced. When it was wet enough, she grasped his cock, rubbing up and down the thick shaft. He groaned and tried to push her hand away, but she was teaching him a lesson.

She rubbed the head of cock lightly with her finger, teasing the leaking slit. She switched hand then, and licked the precum off her finger. Angelus was watching her with eyes that were turning golden at the edges. She was getting to him ─ good. That was the point of this exercise.

That, and she enjoyed it.

He tried thrusting into her hand, but she stilled him with the other by gripping his waist. He glared at her angrily, but that faded under the motions of her hand. She kept stroking him until he was unable to hide his need, and that is when she finally released his cock.

"No more teasing?" she said.

"No more teasing. Fuck, let me just -"

Buffy gasped when he finally entered her. She'd been aching inside since the moment his finger had first thrust into her and she knew that only his cock could satisfy that ache. She wrapped her legs around Angelus tightly so that he couldn't pull away and slung her arms around his neck so that she could kiss him. She felt him vamp out before she saw it, his fangs burying themselves in her tongue. She let him bite her, loving the mix of the pain and the pleasure.

When Buffy had to release him for air, she panted against his lips in time with his thrusting motions. He was speeding up, but she wasn't close enough, not yet.

"Wait," she said, "I need -"

"I know," he replied darkly. His arms were wrapped around her midriff. Using one hand to hold her against him, he snaked the other one between their bodies, brushing her clit with his finger. The combination of his cock inside of her and his finger against her clit sent waves of pleasure through her, but it still wasn't enough. Her teasing had pushed him too far and he was going to come before she had the chance to.

"I can't," she said, frustrated.

His eyes glowed fully yellow then and as he pushed into her, his teeth buried themselves in her neck. It was exactly what Buffy needed to push her over the edge. Angelus' hips pressed into hers as he joined her in orgasm.

When they disentangled themselves and came to a stand beside the table, Angelus said, "You're beautiful when you come."

"You're serious," she says. She continued with a dismissive wave of his hand, "That's ridiculous."

"You're beautiful all the time," he said.

"Really, you need to stop," Buffy said, feeling weirded out. "What is this a new vampire thing? You feel the need to torture me?"

"That, Buff, I'd feel the need to do anyway," he said, smirking, "But I think the vampire thing makes the feelings I have so much stronger and I want to share them."

"Oh," she said, understanding. She didn't blush except during stress and a good fight, but she felt the red flush growing on her skin.

"You're blushing," Angelus pointed out.

"Thanks for pointing that out. I didn't notice," she said, rubbing her face with her hands in a futile attempt to make the blush fade.

"No problem. I live to be of use," he said.

They stood there in silence until Angelus pulled her towards him, leaning his head on her shoulder.

"No more biting," Buffy said.

"Okay," he acquiesced. He nuzzled her neck softly, and then licked at the raised skin of his bite. It felt good, nice and warmer than anything Buffy had ever felt.

"When are you leaving?"

He laughed into her skin, the sound making her body rumble. "You want me gone so soon?"

"Do you want to be gone?"

"Are you trying to get me to say I want to stay? You can just ask right out Buffy? I'm feeling, what's the word, complacent right now. I promise not to lie," he said into her neck in between kisses he pressed to the skin.

She sighed. He wasn't going to make this easy and why did she think that he would?

"Do you want to stay?"

"For now. Until we're ready to leave," he replied.

She twisted in his arms so that she was facing him. "_We?"_

"Of course. What did you think this whole exercise was about? I came to you because I want you to come with me. Will you do that?"

She watched him steadily. He wasn't smiling, but he didn't look angry either. He had said it so matter of factly and his expression matched his tone. She couldn't tell if he was lying or playing with her or being truthful. All she could do is give him an answer. The question was whether she would say yes or no. Over the past few months of their fights and their fucks and their relationship if you could call it that, she had felt more alive than she ever had on her own. Even killing people hadn't been as exciting before. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Yes," she said because she could always say no later on if he began to bore her. She really hoped he didn't. She doubted that killing him would be as satisfying as this.

* * *

**December 29**

Darla tore into the throat of the man she had been fucking for hours, reveling in the taste of his blood on her tongue. He screamed until her teeth in his neck shut him up. In the corner, Drusilla sat, watching as the man's blood splattered against the bed sheets and the walls, painting a grotesque picture.

"When is daddy coming home?" Drusilla asked plaintively when Darla stood up and wrapped the blood drenched robe around her.

"Soon," Darla said, smiling. "Soon."


End file.
